I believe it's due to poor lighting that tricked us into
thinking that the "image" is a real pax. This doesn't happen when
there is sufficient light after daybreak even though our mind is
tired after a night's driving.
It definitely has nothing to do with "money not enough"
pressure, since the only aim in cruising the street at 2~3am is to
get a fare paying pax.
Maybe you are right, but for me it only happened during those
desperate times. Never had problem on "busy" nights. :)