From 1010WINS:The city’s Taxi and Limousine Commission announced Friday that it plans to take away the licenses of 633 cab drivers, who are accused of overcharging passengers over the past two years.
The commission had initially accused 35,558 cabbies of illegally charging a rider at least once. However, new figures released on Friday showed that 21,819 drivers overcharged passengers a total of 286,000 times. Of those drivers, 13,315 ripped-off passengers once or twice, according to the TLC.
The new findings showed that most of the scamming came from a group of 633 cabbies -- who are said to have overcharged riders 50 or more times. The TLC is in the process of revoking the licenses of those drivers.
David Yassky, Chairman of the Taxi and Limousine Commission, says that New Yorkers should now feel comfortable that they can get into a cab and know that "they’re going to be charged the proper amount."
Executive Director of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance, Bhairavi Desai, says the original numbers were inflated and that the comparatively small number of cabbies now accused of wrongdoing shows most cab drivers are honest and hard working.
8 comments:
I hope they were very careful with their investigation. Not to condone crooks, but this is the livelihood of these men who may wind up being charges of the state instead.
It's all on the computer. No one who didn't do this is going to be accused or fired. Those who did-- there is a hardcopy and electronic record to show you are a crook. You better hope your immigration papers are in order as well when they pick you up!
I wonder if they are doing this to shake up the cabbie network.
Would it not be something if the next 'incident' involves a fully loaded cab?
"Of those drivers, 13,315 ripped-off passengers once or twice, according to the TLC."
Forgetting the grammatical lapse, this figure is, of course, specious, since the TLC is again not explaining if the numbers are of actual monetary transactions, or simple error in using the meter.
The small button a driver must hit at the end of the trip, to set up the meter for credit card use, is one in a row of small buttons. Next to it is the rate button, which can very easily be depressed before hitting the proper one. At that time, the rate button automatically registers #4, the out-of-town rate, but this does not replace the dollar amount on the meter. Whether or not this is enough for a reading of the rip-off rate, I don't know, since the TLC is clear as Newtown Creek on this. (This happened to me two weeks ago, while dropping off a passenger on the LES; it in no way affected the fare, which was paid by credit card.)
That the TLC has backed off its tarring of 75% of licensed drivers is naturally too little, too late, for scalp-hunting yahoos. But let me ask long-time QC folks this: in what other line of city business that we bitch about ritualistically here do we see a rate of malfeaseance as low as 1.25%, as now appears to be the case?
How come the Islamists never set off car bombs in Temple Square in Salt Lake City?
They should quickly revoke cabbie licenses found to be in violation of the rules to maintain it in good standing. This will make a cabbie respect the rules or lose his/her livelihood.
I want to drive a yellow cab this summer because I heard it's decent money. I'm a 23 year old white male and my parents are trying to talk me out of it. they think I'm gonna get killed. What do you think?
It's about time.
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