April 22, 2008
No Meter Extension For Cabbies ... Sort Of
Over at City Desk, Mike DeBonis is reporting early from the mayor's taxi meter presser that Fenty will not be extending the May 1 deadline for taxi drivers to have time and distance meters installed in their cabs. Barring further action by a judge to delay the deadline once again, the District's cab drivers will now have to scramble to get their meters installed by next Thursday, or face $1,000 fines each time they pick up a fare without a meter.
We'll have an update when we get the rest of the details of Fenty's plan, but there's a lot to think about here. What will happen if cabs can't meet the deadline? Who will be enforcing whether taxis are using meters, and how? And should the May 1 deadline stand and you end up getting in a taxi without a meter next Thursday, what are you supposed to do? Refuse to ride in it?
UPDATE 11:20 a.m.: The Post has a little more, and it turns out those $1,000 fines won't necessarily kick in until June 1, though drivers will be issued warning tickets if they're caught between May 1 and May 31. Fenty said taxi inspectors and the police department will be involved in spot checking cabs to look for meters.
So, between May 1 and May 31, should taxi passengers refuse to ride in cabs without meters? A press release sent out by the mayor's office indicates probably. It reads: "Passengers who wish to file a complaint against an unmetered cab should obtain the taxicab driver’s name, company and license number and report it to the DC Taxicab Commission at (202) 645-6018 or dctc@dc.gov." Good luck getting the name of a driver operating without a meter, but cab company and license plate number should be doable.
Photo by akkleis
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I'll refuse to ride in a cab without a meter after the deadline. I don't take cabs all that often, and unless it's an emergency situation, I'm not going to pay a driver who isn't in compliance with the meters. Maybe that's just me, but I'm so sick of the drivers trying every which way to hold this up.
I'm going to pretend not to notice until I arrive at my destination...and then refuse to play upon arrival. What are they gonna do? If they go to the cops, they get fined!
It's about time the cabbies get screwed as much as the riders!
I say keep the deadline and let citizens help enforce it. Call the Taxicab Commission or the Mayor's office with the cab's license or plate number for each cab sans meter.
Until then, let MD and VA cabs pick up fares in the District (especially interstate trips) and allow service depots in MD and VA to install meters in DC cabs. The drivers knew that this was coming and that eventually they would be getting meters, even if it took another act of Congress. Sitting on your hands and whining is not an excuse for not complying with the law.
oh, that's good netwerqq. i wish i'd thought of that. you might want to invest in a bulletproof vest though.
i'm just going to continue not riding in cabs, period. it seems to work better for me.
ymmv.
I've gotten my hopes up too many times, I'll believe it when i see it.
GOOD! They've had seven months to prepare for the switch, so if they aren't prepared, it is their own fault.
I think I may store the Taxicab Commission's phone number in my cell phone, and report any cab that doesn't have a meter.
Prediction:
Saturday, May 3; 3AM, Adams Morgan:
Massive unrest as drunken NOVA-ites and Bethesdans realize they are stranded in DC, many in rather impractical footwear.
No cabs to be found.
Now that will be funny.
So, there's no extension, but they will only get a warning (and not pay a fine) until June 1.
How is that not an extension?
NPR had a report about meters this morning, and one of the questions they brought up was, "How will the city manage to install all these meters before the deadline?"
Am I missing something? WTF would the *city* be installing these meters? Shouldn't the drivers be responsible for installation and upkeep of these things?
Maybe it's just another example of NPR's piss-poor strain of journalism...
Too funny. Cabbies spent all their time striking and not enough trying to follow the law.
Yeah Bethesdaist, now that I finally have the press release from the city in front of me, I agree that this is a 1-month extension in everything but name alone. I guess it's not unusual to have a sort of phase-in period for big new regulations, but still. Basically the cabbies won't be fined until June 1. That should be plenty of time for them to get meters installed.
Saturday, May 3; 3AM, Adams Morgan:
[Outside Jumbo Slice]
What's that in the sky?
Is it a bird? A plane?
It looks like a naked guy in a jetpack with a gorilla mask and ass chaps! And that's no jet con trail coming from the exhaust...he's been eating Senate Navy Bean Soup! INCOMING!
Donny's been hit! Call the medics, Dude. Rest easy, good buddy, you're doing fine. We got help choppering in.
Okay, so it's extended. Are we supposed to pay the zone fare until June 1 if they don't have a meter?
I'd say if you're forced into taking a cab without a meter, don't tip them a dime.
I never do.
I have a feeling that you are going to see a lot of cabs with meters that are not "fully installed" until 12am on 6/1 (which is a Saturday night).
I can't wait for day when I can finally take a metered cab to the Harris Teeter in Adams Morgan. That day is so close, I can almost taste it!
It sort of tastes like Tofurky.
I usually tip 20 cents.
No meter, no fare.
Next step: Medallion system. We must get these roaches off the streets.
The second update to your update makes it seem a tad less like an extension (the part at the end now about turning in a unmetered cab driver). I mean, they are encouraging us to file complaints against unmetered cabs, which implies they are supposed to be metered. But the only result of that complaint will be a warning (until June 1)?
Sorry, that was supposed to read "a tad more like an extension."
@drew
You never tip cab drivers?
@welles: Hey there, good looking.
[cracking whip at pedestrians and cabs]
Get a horse! Get a horse!
There should be a taxi frequent rider program where you get points for each dollar you spend that can be spent on upgrades. Like, a seat that you don't stick to in the summer: 100 points. The ability to call a cab that comes within 2 hours during non-peak times: 150 points. They could exchange with Amtrak Guest Rewards so I could succeed in having hundreds of thousands of the most worthless points ever. Every ride in a cab that doesn't have a meter is a $1000 fine to the city and a 1000 point fine to the rider. Effective May 1.
"You never tip cab drivers?"
Much like anything else, it really depends. I try and tip them. Sometimes I have the money on hand, sometimes I don't. Depends on if they drive wrecklessly as well.
Much like anything else, it really depends.
OK, 'cause above you said that you never tip cabbies.
there's my nominee for comment of the week. i'm still laughing...
the fare is not fair, when the meter is not there!
http://craptasticcabsofdc.blogspot.com/