Qdoba Should Come to Mt P Street; More Taxis, Taxes: Keeping Tabs

**Qdoba, the Mexican fast-food/casual restaurant is opening a new location in Falls Church. That's not nearly as important as the fact that that franchisee is looking for new locations across Washington. Mount Pleasant Street, NW, perhaps? I wish! Take one of our open storefronts, please!

**The Ward One taxi scandal is turning into a DC-wide taxi scandal with the arrest of nearly 40 people in connection with an elaborate bribery scheme. Well, actually not that elaborate. The accused allegedly attempted to bribe DC Taxicab Commissioner Leon J. Swain Jr. for access to taxi operators licenses. Mr. Swain apparently alerted the proper authorities and worked to ensnare the accused. Initially the news reports centered on the arrest of one man, Ted Loza. Mr. Loza is the chief of staff for Ward One council member Jim Graham. He was arrested on related bribery charges. Mount Pleasant is in Ward One.

**If you hadn't noticed, the DC sales and use tax (i.e. sales tax) just went up to 6%, from 5.75%. Council made the change last summer and it officially changed on October 1. Does not affect restaurant or gas taxes.

**The Wall Street Journal labeled DC the hottest "Youth-Magnet City." We're tied with Seattle as the top destination spot for college grads, interns an the like. That's good I guess. I'm not in my 20s anymore, but I was when I moved here. Loved it then and love it now! Go DC!

Adams Morgan Taxi Blackout?

Had a rather good run the last few months not talking about taxi drivers. After the implementation of the metered fare system last summer, all seemed well on the taxi front. The fare seemed, well, fair. Customers like never have to worry about walking the extra few blocks to get out of a zone or being overcharged if they didn't know about the zones. The drivers contend that they're losing up to 30% of their pre-meter weekly income. But Jim Graham says there are as many as 300 new taxi drivers registering per month. I have no idea if that's true. If there are so many new drivers becoming licensed there must be some money to be made. And if I were a driver, I'd want less drivers getting licenses, because that would dilute the product. But moving on...

The whole DC taxicab industry seems sleazy and corrupt, from the drivers gaming the old zone system to the recent FBI probe of an official in Graham's office over taking a bribe on behalf of taxi legislation. Taxi drivers were incensed over the bill which would add another layer of regulation to the registration part of the business. A move that could eventually limit the number of cabs through medallions or another identifying marker. They had planned a strike for last Tuesday, which apparently was carried out.

This weekend, there is talk of another strike, this time in Graham's district, Ward One. Taxi drivers are planning to boycott Adams Morgan on late-night Friday and late-night Saturday. The "service blackout" could encompass the area from 16th Street to Connecticut Avenue and Florida Avenue to the Duke Ellington Bridge. Basically all of Adams Morgan, especially the 18th Street strip. I guess it's an effective strategy?! Or not really, considering the only people left without a ride those nights will most likely be people who don't live in Ward One.

Somehow, I don't think this will work. But just in case they somehow pull this off, all you folks who haven't mastered the mass transit route back to your place of residence better brush up on it. Or carry along a DD with you. Or walk home. Whatever happens, let me know. I'd like to see how this "strike" works out.

Reasons to Be Car Free in DC #6: Real Taxis!

If you ever want to stalk meet me, come to the Black Cat on Friday or Saturday night. I'm the guy sitting at the bar, or dancing, or possibly watching the show. On later nights (earlier mornings), especially during the winter, I like to take a cab home to Mount Pleasant. Before June of this year, that meant walking up to U and 14th Streets and then waiting for an empty cab to come by, fighting off women in heels (cabbies tend to pass me up for them) and dodging aggressive drivers who obviously aren't thinking about pedestrian cross walk rights. I could have caught one in front of the Black Cat, but that meant paying for two zones as the zone barrier was U Street. That ride was $9.80 (including the gas surcharge, which is still in effect). With any sort of tip (I always do) the trip was gauranteed to cost more than $10.00. Would the meters be more affordable? I'll spare you the suspense: YES.

After June 1 when the District began enforcing the change to metered fare, I've taken cabs more often across the board. Its now reasonable for me to take a cab to a get-together if I'm running late, to Union Station to avoid lugging my bags on the Metro, and to home from a night out on the town. These are all everyday activities I avoided hailing cab for before the switch. That $9.80 ride home using the zone system cost me $6.75 using the meter. The drop rate, or inital charge, was $3.00. Mount Pleasant is only about 1.5 miles from 14th and T Streets, so the mileage only cost an additional $2.25. We barely stopped and hit all the green lights perfectly, so we idled for only a few seconds the whole ride (the idling rate is $15 per hour; do the math). Add in the $1.00 gas surcharge and the fare came to $6.75. Sorry if you disagree, but I think that's more fair than the arbitrary zone rate of nearly $10.00. Also, for those who live further afield, think about using cabs more; the maximum fare within the District is now $19.00. Not that meters will cause any of you to give up your cars, but having another affordable option to get around town certainly makes it easier to live in DC without one.

omg, plz. Meters. Just Do It.

For the love of all things measured on a time and distance standard: please let's switch cabs to meters. Like, today please. Yesterday, Mayor Fenty (sort of) clarified the meaning of a recent court ruling that confirmed his power to dictate rules to the Taxicab Commission. I previously assumed he had those powers because he is THE MAYOR. But the city was sued by a group of drivers in order to delay or prevent the imposition of time and distance meters onto all cabs operating in DC. The original deadline of April 6, 2008 has come and gone and since the court ruling was just released, the new deadline could have slipped into the summer and even, as some speculated, October.

However, the mayor is sticking to his guns by demanding that taxi drivers in DC have time and distance meters installed in their vehicles by May 1, 2008, less than a month after the original date. There will be a grace period. While city enforcers can charge $1,000 for each offense (not having a working meter in the cab), they won't assess fines until June 1. Not surprisingly, some drivers are calling for a court appeal and, of course, a strike. Ugh. The driver's have had strikes several times regarding the meters and NO ONE CARES. As I've said before, its a regulated business, so expect to be regulated to a reasonable extent. This is reasonable. The people want the change, no matter how hard the cab drivers try to convince us otherwise. Also, every other city and its mother uses the meters and only the smaller cities with smaller taxi fleets use the zone system. I'll be so happy when this ordeal is over, can you tell?

Open Letter to Taxi Drivers

Listen, we don't want the zones. We want meters. If we JUST got rid of the zones, I think most DC residents would be happy. But we also realize that there is a strong need for a fair and equitable way to charge passengers for a service and compensate drivers for effort and time. We don't need to reinvent the wheel. Most other major cities use the time/distance meter. Its not rocket science! Cities like New York, Philadelphia, and Chicago all have millions of residents who are OK with metered taxis. We can just copy off of their papers. Cheating is allowed in managing municipal agencies. Its called best practices.

Forget the pleas of some taxi drivers about how much money they'll lose because of meters. When the debate began last year, many drivers complained that customers would pay MORE under meters. So we'd pay more and they'd make less? Come on taxi drivers.

Mayor Fenty originally set the date of April 6, 2008 for all taxis in the District to have operating time/distance meters. Recently, he pushed that date back to May 1st to give drivers a chance to install equipment; and apparently to try and derail the process through multiple day long strikes and an on-line petition. I support workers all over the city, especially those in the service industry. However, unfortunately for taxi drivers, its a regulated business. There are reasons why some industries are regulated and the reasons behind regulating cabs, taxis and limos are obvious. We were just long overdue in revising some of our regulations. Its up to the Mayor to make sure we stick to the decision made last fall; banish the zone system, bring on the meters.

The zone system was old, open to fraud and just plain unfair, even if applied lawfully. Remember when Metro got rid of cashiers at parking decks? It was an unpopular idea to lay off workers, but ended up saving Metro and all of its customers millions of dollars because SmarTrip card readers don't steal. The city is making a similar correction. Some short term pain is a necessity in order to fix this crucial transportation option for the long run. Get on board drivers, get on board.

Drop Rates and School Closings

Two quick news notes:

Number One: Kudos to Mayor Fenty and the Taxicab Commission. The Washington Post reports on some changes related to metered taxis, due to arrive this spring. They listened to citizen feedback and decided to lower the drop rate for the new taxi meters. The drop rate is the amount at which the meter starts at the beginning of a fare. Basically, the minimum charge. The initial drop rate was $4, making it unlikely that riders would realize any rate benefit from the old zone system. The new $3 drop rate is a little more reasonable. It makes short, 6 or 7 block trips possible. Fenty also stuck down the right of a cabbie to pick up additional fares on a ride, eliminated the rush hour surcharge, and reduced the snow emergency fee. I agree with all the decisions, although cab drivers may institute some strike days before the end.

Number Two: Tonight (Thursday), the city will host multiple hearings across the District on the school closing and reorganization plan. Parents an other residents can address the plan floated by Mayor Fenty and Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee. No schools in Mt Pleasant will be affected, but feel free to attend one of the meetings if you at all interested. Tubman Elementary (3101 13th St NW) is the closest hearing location to Mt Pleasant. The full list of meeting spaces is here. Should be an interesting night of discussions.

Two Words: Metered Fare

Read it here. I pined for it here.

DC Should Follow NYC in Regulating Taxis

Starting February of next year all New York City taxis must accept credit cards as payment. The controversial decision to implement this change, and a bunch of others, was made by the city's Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC). The credit card decision also stipulates that the passenger be able to follow the route of the cab in real time on a GPS video map in the cab. The screen will also show advertisements during the ride (ugh). These changes come on the heels of another major announcement by the New York City government that all cabs in NYC (over 13,000) must be hybrids by 2012.

The recent decrees by the TLC haven't gone without comment or complaint, especially from drivers. Many are opposed to the measures because they fear that the owners of the fleets or individual medallion owners will pass the cost of the forced enhancements onto the drivers. Others are afraid that the new systems are too complicated and despise the credit card fees. As a passenger, you'll be able to charge ANY amount, even a $3 cab fare, of which a significant percentage will be turned over to Visa/MC, AMEX or whoever.

As for DC, I won't even try to start thinking about getting real time tracking info or credit card machines in taxis just yet; that's fantasy for us down here in little ol' nation's capital. I'm still amazed that we still have a zone system that dates from the 1930s! Maryland and Virgina cabbies use the meter. Wait... every cabbie in every other major U.S. city uses the meter. Our system is so outdated we're encouraged to use a fare calculator before in-town trips and even to do the math by hand before trips between the District and MD or VA! We can't even get on the same page as Montgomery, Prince Georges and Arlington Counties.

Sorry all you proponents of the zone system, its time to scrap it. That whole business about longer trips being cheaper with the zones is silly. If cabbies were getting ripped on longer trips with the zone system, they'd be crying to get rid of it and going on strike like they did in 2004. They were protesting the replacement of the DC Taxi Cab Commission with another, less powerful agency. Also, where are all those cabs waiting to take the Hillcrest, Brookland, or Takoma residents home after a night on the town. No way, they just decline and pick up someone who lives just across the next boundary; a quick and easy fare, then they go back for more. Not to mention all those tourists, non-confrontational locals, and college students who get overcharged since there's no definitive, clear, easy to read meter, which gives you a real price. Its like a cash register. You want to see the price clear-as-day from a '3rd party' and pay your fair share. Not a made up sum that literally changes from driver to driver for identical trips. We already pay metered rates to travel further on the Metro, so its not a novel idea.

I'm not advocating that we force drivers to install GPS or credit card machines. I love cash only, its fast and easy. But at the very least they should be asked to join the 20th century. I'll forgo trying for the 21st century. Leave that for the next guy.