With time ticking down on the legislative session in Albany, the Bloomberg administration made a new proposal on Sunday to accomplish one of its most highly publicized goals of the year: providing New Yorkers the right to legally hail a livery cab outside crowded parts of Manhattan.
Previous versions of the plan, which could change the travel habits of millions, had been held up by months of fractious negotiations with the taxi industry. Owners of yellow taxis worried that their licenses would lose value; livery cab drivers were concerned about new competition and a fear that they would be priced out of the city’s new program.
But the new bill, quietly introduced in Albany over the weekend, could circumvent those concerns by relying on a permit-based system that does not require the approval of the City Council, whose members had expressed concerns about earlier iterations of the plan.
The regular legislative session was scheduled to end Monday, but it is expected to be extended into the week. While it remained unclear on Sunday whether the bill could be passed in time, news of the revamped legislation seemed to catch many in the taxi world off guard, and leaders from most corners of the industry reacted with a mixture of outrage, pained disbelief — and a plan to hold a large protest outside City Hall on Monday afternoon.
David Pollack, who represents a group of medallion owners and taxi leasing agents, said, “If one livery car has a meter in it and has the right to pick up street hails, every single livery in New York City will look at that as a green light to do what they are doing illegally now, and that’s picking up our fares.”
Under the revised legislation, livery cab owners could buy permits, at $1,500 each, that would grant them the right to pick up street hails in the boroughs outside Manhattan and in parts of Upper Manhattan north of Central Park.
In return, the livery cabs would be required to install meters, GPS devices and credit-card readers to ensure more transparent pricing for passengers.
The cars would be painted a new color, have new markings, and be outfitted with a roof light to allow passengers to distinguish them from yellow cabs and standard liveries, which can make only prearranged pick-ups.
The bill would also authorize the sale of 1,500 additional yellow medallions, but not until July 2012.
2 Responses
Why not abolish medallions and allow anyone who wants to run a cab to do so, subject only to licensing requirements. Monopolies and cartels, such as the “medallion” system only hurt consumers and serve no social benefit. Free enterprise works, really.
So once again, Bloomberg has forced his agenda over the will of the city council, and being unable tui win them over just bypassed them. This man is unstoppable.