C O U N C I L O F T H E D I S T R I C T O F C O L U M B I A

O FFICE OF C OUNCILMEMBER M ARY M. C HEH

CHAIR, COMMITTEE ON THE ENVIRONMENT,
PUBLIC WORKS, AND TRANSPORTATION

SUMMARY OF THE D.C. TAXI SERVICE IMPROVEMENT BILL

On December 20, 2011, Councilmember Mary M. Cheh introduced Bill 19-630, the D.C. Taxicab
Commission Service Improvement Amendment Act of 2011, along with Councilmember Tommy
Wells. Mayor Vincent C. Gray and D.C. Taxicab Commission Chairman Ron Linton have expressed
support for this legislation. This bill has been referred to the Council's Committee on the
Environment, Public Works, and Transportation, which is chaired by Councilmember Cheh. The
Committee intends to hold a formal public hearing on this legislation in early 2012.

Taxis would be required to have the following improvements within 1 year:

 Credit card readers with printable receipts.
 GPS devices in all vehicles.
 New meters that will provide customers with a printable receipt identifying the cost of the ride and
the location of the trip.
 Uniform cruising lights that identify on/off duty and with/without passenger.
 Uniform color scheme, while still allowing company names and insignia to appear on the sides of
vehicles. After holding a hearing and considering public input, the Commission would choose the
color.
 Digital manifests that will provide the Commission with a real-time, digital accounting of trips,
fares, and earnings.
 Security alert buttons accessible by both driver and passenger in an emergency.

Further improvements to the taxi system include:

 Increasing the number of wheelchair accessible vehicles within taxi fleets.
 Encouraging the use of hybrid or alternative fuel taxis.
 Increasing service in historically under-served areas of the city.
 Increasing the number of hack inspectors to monitor drivers and cab conditions.
 Creating a point system to monitor compliance with rules. If drivers accrue too many violations,
they will have their taxi license suspended or revoked.
 Increasing required training for taxi drivers.
 Clarifying the authority of the Taxicab Commission and permitting hospitality industry
representatives and the public to serve as Commissioners.

Funding and Fare Changes:

 The Commission would establish a fee that will be used to help offset the cost to drivers and the
Commission of implementing these service improvements. The Commission has said that this fee
will not exceed 50 cents per trip.
 Independently, on December 13, the Taxicab Commission proposed increasing the distance rate
and the wait time rate while eliminating most of the existing surcharges. These proposed fare
changes are separate from this legislation.

1350 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE, N.W.  SUITE 108

 WASHINGTON, DC 20004 
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 Taxi Cab Survey-Comment Summary
Below is a pie chart and summary of the “comments” section from the Taxi Cab Survey.
The comments were broken down into 7 categories that are explained below. These
comments/complaints were the most common themes throughout the survey.

A. Racial Profiling -67 Total 5.6%

B. Refuse Certain Location- 234 Total 19.4%
C. Extra Fees/Unfair Route- 337 Total 27.9%
D. Drivers Are Rude- 88 Total 7.3%
E. Cab is Dirty/Old- 163 Total 13.5%
F. Driver on Phone- 95 Total 7.8%
G. No Credit Card/GPS- 222 Total 18.5%

Total Comments: 1206

*Honorable Mention: Overall traffic complaints such as speeding and making illegal u-turns
(hard to quantify)
4025 responses

Summary See complete responses

Overview

What is your opinion of taxi service in the District?

Excellent 148 4%
Good 709 18%
Fair 1701 42%
Poor 1467 36%

How does taxi service in the District compare to taxi service in other American cities?
Better 316 8%
About the same 680 17%
Worse 2783 69%
I don't know 246 6%

Service Improvements

Do you support legislation to improve taxi service in the District?

Yes 3790 94%

No 235 6%
 If the District establishes a uniform color scheme for taxis, what color should it be?
Black 167 4%
Blue 173 4%
Green 268 7%
Orange 424 11%
Purple 158 4%
Red 600 15%
Silver 116 3%
Tan 21 1%
White 169 4%
Yellow 1526 38%
Other 403 10%

Specifically, what taxi service improvements do you support? - Requiring all taxis to accept
credit cards
Support 3753 93%
Oppose 106 3%
No Opinion 166 4%

Specifically, what taxi service improvements do you support? - Installing GPS units in all
taxis
Support 2626 65%
Oppose 289 7%
No Opinion 1110 28%
 Specifically, what taxi service improvements do you support? - Installing uniform cruising
lights to signal if the taxi is available
Support 3691 92%
Oppose 88 2%
No Opinion 246 6%

Specifically, what taxi service improvements do you support? - Establishing a uniform color
scheme for all taxis
Support 2598 65%
Oppose 314 8%
No Opinion 1113 28%

Specifically, what taxi service improvements do you support? - Making all taxi driver trip
logs
Support 2365 59%
Oppose 290 7%
No Opinion 1370 34%

Specifically, what taxi service improvements do you support? - Installing emergency alert buttons for
drivers and passengers
Support 2615 65%
Oppose 185 5%
No Opinion 1225 30%
 Specifically, what taxi service improvements do you
support? - Increasing taxi driver training requirements
Support 2763 69%
Oppose 278 7%
No Opinion 984 24%

Specifically, what taxi service improvements do you

support? - Increasing the number of random taxi
inspections Support 2828 70%
Oppose 303 8%
No Opinion 894 22%

Specifically, what taxi service improvements do you

support? - Adding more handicap- accessible taxis
Support 1849 46%
Oppose 207 5%
No Opinion 1969 49%

Specifically, what taxi service improvements do you support? - Providing incentives for hybrid and
"green" taxis
Support 2767 69%
Oppose 376 9%
No Opinion 882 22%
 Specifically, what taxi service improvements do you support? - Expanding taxi service to
underserved areas

Support 2438 61%

Oppose 361 9%
No Opinion 1226 30%

Specifically, what taxi service improvements do you support? - Removing old taxis from
service
Support 2640 66%
Oppose 400 10%
No Opinion 985 24%

Fare Changes

The Taxicab Commission has proposed increasing the distance rate from $1.50 to $2.16 per mile. It has al
increasing the wait-time rate from $0.25 to $0.42 per minute. However, the Commission would eliminate ex
surcharges, such as the additional-passenger fee, baggage fee, and $1.00 fuel surcharge. Do you support
Commission's proposed changes?

Yes, they are fair and reasonable

Yes, but only if the quality of service improve
No, taxis are already too expensive
No, rates should be even higher
I don't know
Other
 Additional Comments

Do you have any other comments for Councilmember Cheh or the Committee on the Environment,
Public Works, and Transportation, which will be considering this legislation to improve taxi service in
the District?

*Excerpts:
“These taxis need to stop refusing service to Wards 7 and 8”.
“My biggest issue with Taxi driver is racial profiling, often times I have to get another person to hail a cab for me if
I am out after a certain hour.”
“We as customers should not be required to pay a new surcharge to pay for taxi industry improvements.”
“Advertising revenue from touch screen credit card readers and rooftop tents should be more than sufficient to
pay for upgrades and provide additional revenue streams for cab drivers in the long run”.
” Prohibit taxis from talking on phone while driving”

Demographic Questions

Are you a District resident?

Yes 3398 84%
No, I live in Maryland 204 5%
No, I live in Virginia 369 9%
No, I live elsewhere 54 1%

Please tell us how you are connected to the taxi industry:

I am a taxi rider 3810 95%
I am a taxi driver 81 2%
Other 134 3%
If you are a taxi rider, how frequently do you take a taxi in the District:

Two or more times per week 1369 34%

Once a week 1269 32%
Once a month 733 18%
Several times per year 538 13%

What is your age?

18-34 2520 63%
35-49 1125 28%
50-64 315 8%
65 or older 65 2%