Several cab drivers servicing the Adams Morgan area have been refusing to work Saturday and Sunday nights in protest of a bill designed to regulate and limit the number of taxis operating in the D.C. area.
Though Council Member Jim Graham, D-Ward 1, has withdrawn the bill he proposed in an attempt to appease angry cab drivers, the drivers have still continued with protests as planned.
Proposed in June, the bill called for the D.C. Taxi Commission to implement either a certification system or medallion system for local cabs, according to a copy of the bill obtained by The Eagle.
Under the medallion system, the Commission would charge a fee depending on the type of vehicle each cab driver operated. Low-emissions and wheelchair-accessible vehicles would receive their medallions for free, while all other vehicles would need to pay in order to stay in business, according to the bill.
Drivers have been protesting on weekends by refusing to pick up passengers between 1 and 4 a.m. in areas north of U Street N.W., east of Connecticut Avenue N.W., south of Harvard Street N.W. or west of 16th Street N.W., according to The Washington Post.
“I think that the message was getting through, and the strike was successful,” said Larry Frankel, a spokesman for the Dominion of Cab Drivers.
Graham argued that a lack of restriction was causing too many cabs to overwhelm the District.
Some critics of the bill say that limiting the total number of cabs in operation is not a good thing.
“The medallion system that is being proposed will force out all of the self-employed cab drivers,” Frankel said.
A gas station on 15th and U Street that serves as a rest stop for cab drivers by day has become a place for drivers to meet up during the work stoppage at night. While drivers convening here did not feel comfortable speaking to The Eagle on the record, most said that the proposed rules and regulations were not clearly communicated to them by anyone.
Lauren Durden, a sophomore in the School of International Service, said she thinks the proposed regulations are a bad idea.
“If you restrict it, then there’s less competition and, I mean, they’re bad enough already about being on time,” Durden said. “If there’s a smaller number then they’re not going to be able to handle all of the people who are calling them.”
Carla Brun, a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences, said the work stoppages on weekend nights will probably present a problem for AU students.
“I think for the particular population of AU students who are 21 [years old], it would be a bigger deal, because how are you going to get back from a bar when the Metro is closed, and people have been drinking, and you obviously can’t drive?” she said.
The certification bill also created a bribery scandal before it was withdrawn. Ted G. Loza, Graham’s chief of staff, was arrested Sept. 22 for accepting $1,500 in bribes on behalf of the taxicab regulation bill, according to the Post.
No charges have been filed against Graham, who said he plans to continue fighting for taxi oversight, according to the Post.
When asked to comment on the withdrawn legislation, a spokesman from Councilmen Graham’s office said, “I believe that the system is not corrupt.”
You can reach this writer at news@theeagleonline.com.
