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Taxi workers held another strike starting at 5AM this morning over demands to remove the new GPS systems, for there to be a healthcare and retirement pension fund, and union recognition. However, it's unclear how many of the tens of thousands of taxi drivers actually struck.
The Metro Taxi Cab Board of Trade says that 95% of the 13,000 taxi fleet was on the streets and the Office of Emergency Management did not notice a "significant drop in the number of taxis on the road," but the Taxi Workers Alliance, which spearheaded the strike, said that 75% of cabs were on strike. The TWA's Bhairavi Desai told amNY that drivers on the roads today were not full-timers but just opportunistic part-timers and medallion owners..
No matter how many hacks are striking, it seems that drivers on the road are winning out, since the zoned fare system allows drivers to pick up multiple fares. The Post explains that "the average 2.8-mile taxi ride, which normally costs $9.60 will earn a driver who picks up four passengers $60 - a 525 percent increase."
Did you notice any more or less cabs? And to anyone who regularly takes cabs, are the fares much more expensive? The September two-day taxi strike seemed to have negligible impact.
Photograph of striking taxi workers at 40 Rector Street by dietrich on Flickr
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I talked with a taxi driver Saturday night and he said he wouldn't be striking. His reasoning: he lost money the first strike and nothing changed anyway. Meanwhile his friends who didn't strike made a killing.
What a scam for the drivers: Declare a strike, get a few people to stand in front of the TLC offices for a few hours, and everyone else keeps driving and gets to charge an arm and a leg under the stupid zone system. They should do this every week.
They should strike over those dopey new logos.
I agree with Tim N. The first time I saw one of those logos I figured the cab had his door smashed in and replaced it himself and hand painted on a crappy logo - sort of like people do with red tape on tail lights.
Little did I realize it was the new official logo. It's just awful.
Some "Alliance"
They really can't get their sh#t together. I see just as many cabs on the street as any other day around here. Some strike, huh? It's pathetic and half-hearted.
Cabbies are upset about the new rules requiring credit card and GPS technology in their cars but I don't really understand why?!
I took a cab a few weeks ago and I was thoroughly elated that I could just swipe my card through and get out. I think I even tipped the guy more than I normally would have!
Suddenly taxi drivers are concerned about privacy and Big Brother "tracking" their movements with the GPS system?!?!?
As I've said before: there are about 45,000 some odd taxi drivers in total, driving 13,000 some odd cabs in NYC everyday!
No one is going to be monitoring or "tracking" their movements. I don't know who is getting into their heads but they're being fed a whole lotta bullsh#t.
Just shut up and take me Downtown, you nincompoop.
Bhairavi needs to get her "alliance" in order because all these half-assed strikes are really going to water her whole schtick down. The cabbies are crying wolf and no one cares.
'Nuff said. Xpress bus here I come!
I had a cabbie a few months ago whose name was Muhammad Butt. No kidding. Anyone else ever get him?
I also had a Muhammad Muhammad once. I don't know if that was his real name or if he just filled out the license application wrong.
I was in a cab hungover at 8 AM last Saturday. The screen in the back of the cab was stuck on the 5 minute "eyewitness news" loop, with the volume on high, and could not be turned off.
My driver told me that there's no way for him to control the screen manually, and so since the screen was frozen, nothing could be done. He told me I was the fourth person to complain so far that morining.
Good job TLC, one month into this program and you've already ruined my morning and probably driven some poor taxi driver nuts.
And the worst part? The drivers are paying %5 surcharges on all tolls and credit card charges!
These are taxi drivers, not fetishists who want to pay to have someone defacate all over them.
Wow Jenchungsra, you really have a knack for elevating public discourse.
It looked to me like 40%, maybe 50% of cabbies weren't working today.
I gotta say, I agree w/the GPS gripe. A lot of people assume GPS will mean on-board navigation system. It doesn't. All it means is that cabbies will be tracked.
As for the credit cards, why not give cabbies a choice, just like delis or retail stores? For many small businesses, the fee credit card companies take from each transaction often isn't worth it. Even those that do have them often have a minimum. If cabbies decide not to install credit card machines, that should be up to them, not the TLC.
it didn't seem like a strike today at all. I saw a plethora of cabs all over especially at the major hubs.
They all took the day off to plan 9/12
The whole reason they need to force all cabs to have CC readers is that until there is 100% penetration, customers can't just assume they can pay with a credit card, which is the whole point. If there are only 50% of the cabs with CC readers, everyone will still need to have cash in their pocket when they flag down a cab. The screens actually suggest tip amounts as well, there is no doubt they cab drivers will wind up making more money with the CC readers. I have no idea why they have a problem with this.
[12]:
You're right...if not all cabs have credit card readers, you'll never know. That is a problem. I don't take cabs often but I'll admit it would be nice if all cabs took credit cards so there was no guess work involved.
But I can't imagine you are serious when you say "I have no idea why they have a problem with this." Have you ever run or know someone running a small business? The credit card fee is just one more expense. Not to mention the lost $$ when it breaks down. These guys aren't millionaires, and they're just trying to protect every last cent they can get. Being a struggling businessman doesn't give you a carte blanche to demand every last concession. But I don't necessarily blame them for it either. When Sheldon Silver does it we call him shrewed. When our local cabbie does it, we call them greedy bastards. That's all I'm saying.
This is the F.U. strike. All the cabbies know that the GPS is inevitable, which they oppose because this will finally induce them to pay taxes like the rest of us. So, instead of "striking," all the cabbies are going to work under the zoning rules, and gouging New Yorkers for one more day.
For the record, I think the GPS is really annoying and would prefer not to have the system.
go back to Ghana and Pakistan. There is no peace or justice for you people.
they may make more money with the CC readers, but they'll have to report their income more closely since, i can assure you, the IRS will be monitoring it and them. so be it.