Taxicab Moratorium Partially Lifted for Green Cabs

Since earlier this year, there's been a moratorium on taxicab licenses. But today, Mayor Vince Gray announced that the moratorium would be partially lifted for very specific types of cabs.

According to a press release, the D.C. Taxicab Commission will start accepting license applications from companies that provide green cabs, of which at least 10 percent of the fleet has to be handicapped-accessible.

The first green cab company in the region set up shop in Arlington in 2008, but environmentally friendly cabs still represent a distinct minority amongst the 8,500 or so taxis in the District. The first wheelchair-accessible cabs only arrived in May 2011 -- but there's only 20 of them in the city so far.

Gray and Taxicab Commissioner Ron Linton said that the move was a step towards a more modern taxicab fleet. Linton has said he'd like to see cabs take credit cards and generally provide more consistent service, but those improvements may come at the expense of a surcharge on every fare.