Taxi Politics
Announced just the day before, last week's work stoppage by D.C. cabs surprised many. After stories in the W. Times and the Post, things seem back to normal - for now. The cab drivers are upset by a proposal by Mayor Anthony Williams to abolish the 9-member Taxicab Commission, and replace it with a "Taxicab and Limousine Services Administration" under the D.C. Department of Transportation, which would be led by an appointed administrator.
To make matters worse, this month's Washingtonian reports finding many problems with D.C. cabs. To start things off, in a 61-trip study they conducted, testers were overcharged 25 times - by an average of $2.16. The article also reported a few disturbing incidents involving taxi drivers in recent years including harassment and one death. It concludes passenger complaints are often ignored, many D.C. taxicabs don't meet safety standards, and convicted criminals are getting licenses to drive cabs - but acknowledges D.C. officials have made improvements eliminating corruption.
Think you've been stiffed by a DC cabbie? You can check the fare with the D.C. Taxi Fare Calculator, and necessary, file a complaint with the DC Taxicab Commission. To get some more perspective on the matter, this past weekend DCist had the opportunity to talk to two cab drivers about last week's cab strike.
The first said he had participated in the strike because he was worried the proposed changes in regulation would allow big corporations to corner the taxi market in D.C., hurting independent drivers. He said that increases in the cost of the licenses and other fees would make it harder for some of the smaller drivers, and speculated that the big cab companies played a role in pressing for the changes.
The second driver said that although he supported the strike, he had worked that day because he had not been able to work much during Ramadan, and needed money to pay for some work on his car. Interesting, this driver had a slightly different perspective on the issue. He said that while increased fees, regulations, and meters were part of the situation, he felt it was simply a move by the mayor's office to consolidate power. We were surprised to read in the Washingtonian article (but not in either the W. Times or the Post) that Mayor Williams has left five of the nine commission positions vacant, perhaps in an attempt to abolish that body. Neither driver seemed to hold a very strong opinion about meters.
Shown is a the D.C. taxi from the video game Midtown Madness 2.