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Get injured by a Boston Cab? You are SOL
By adamg on Mon, 04/01/2013 - 11:17am
The Globe continues its look at the local taxi industry with some depressing news for anybody who gets injured by or in a local cab.
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Comments
what about if you get attacked?
I was attacked by a cabbie - hit me with his door, then hit me with his cab, then got out, attacked me, and threw my bike into the middle of the road. Cops by and large did nothing after showing up to take the report. I had a medallion number and part of a plate, and they refused to put out an APB or anything. He was on half a dozen traffic and security cameras before the attack, too.
Plus: there were people in the cab at the time who witnessed the attack!
Ah, but you see
You were riding a bicycle, it seems.
That makes you less than human in the eyes of the police. If you aren't in a car, then you aren't a person, according to BPD.
(cue long thread)
P.S. Kudos to the Globe for doing some real reporting. Now let's see a candidate pick up on this in the upcoming municipal election.
Um
so the gentleman doored you, then he willfully assaulted you with his vehicle, willfully assaulted you with his body, and vandalized your personal property.
How can the cops overlook the two counts of assault and vandalism?
Not just cabs. All drivers
Not just cabs. All drivers should have 500K in liability insurance, because that is how much of a medical tab you can run up if you get run over by a car.
It really is that simple/.
Terrible
This is actually something I didn't know (except the "private contractors" shlitch).
Before I prefered Livery and Uber. Now, it's all I'll be taking.
All of this is perfectly
All of this is perfectly legal, which means it is 100% ethical! Anyone who complains about this is obviously a communist and an enemy of the free market system. If you don't like it, you are free to start your own cab company, buy your own medallions, and compete on a level playing field!
I know this is satire
And I would usually agree with your words. But medallions are artificially finite, like liquor licenses. Different rules apply than "the free market" in those cases.
This is clearly a scumbag industry being enabled by scumbag elected representatives. Maybe a legislator's wife or kid should get mowed down by a cabbie. Only way they'll apparently learn.
What got me
Taxi cabs are only required to carry about one half the insurance as a bike courier.
Now, do some physics and look at how many people get killed and explain that, other than favortism to one and demonization of the other.
That, and
the fact that they're allowed to forgo working through an insurance company and manage their own claims. WTF? If there's really some advantage (other than to the millionaire medallion owners) of using the deposit system, there should at least be a mediation element using a theoretically impartial party to administer the claims.
I see nu-thing, hearing
I see nu-thing, hearing nu-thing, know nu-thing, do nu-thing!
*channeling Sargent Schulz*
A modest proposal
Cambridge's ridiculous cheap housing for the rich program got taken down by initiative petition - STATEWIDE initiative petition.
Funny how Ken Reeves of "I don't get the rape thing" was the first to whine about paying market rate for his apartment, but the law was upheld.
SOOOOOO ... how about an initiative petition to abolish the medallion program and regionalize the cab services?
I don't see why that can't be at least started if not done.
To flesh it out a little: to
To flesh it out a little:
to drive a cab in Mass, you should
have a city-specced car with a safety inspection, adequate insurance, a registered and licensed driver, and a city specced meter, charging city specced fares. No medallion requirement whatsoever.
Driving cabs without all of those, up to date, should be a crime.
Driving cabs with all those, up todate, should be a right.
Sounds good?
Why medallions?
Can anyone offer a principled defense of the medallion system? That is, some justification beyond protecting current medallion holders' investments (which I don't see as a justification at all).
It could be chaotic if there
It could be chaotic if there were way too many cabs cruising for fares.
How so?
Maybe initially, but eventually a number of those cabs wouldn't be making enough money to survive, and wouldn't cruise for fares any longer....or would only work at night...or maybe just on fri/sat nights.
Agreed
Most industries are able to sort out oversupply problems pretty quickly, and without any harm to the consumer.
The image anon invokes does make me smile - 20 cabs diving towards the sidewalk every time a pedestrian lifts his arm. Chaos!
But limited urban street
But limited urban street space is a tragedy of the commons problem. And a taxi jam has negative effects for pedestrians, other drivers, and people who live nearby.
That's assuming a taxi jam
That's assuming a taxi jam would actually happen. Last I checked,
taxi rides are expensive, and at current rates, there are only so many people out there sticking their thumbs out every night.
yeah especially after 2 AM
when there are no cabs to be found at all.
the theory is
The theory used to justify regulation is that if there are too many cabs, and rates fall too far as a result of cutthroat competition, cab owners will skimp on maintenance and repair to cut costs and public safety will be put at risk.
This was the same theory used back in the day to justify regulation of airlines and interstate trucking--restricting competition to protect public safety, by guaranteeing the players enough gross income to be able to maintain their vehicles.
Not saying I *agree* with the theory, mind.
A good theory....
But as long as there is a yearly inspection and licensing procedure that is strictly enforced (much like with private vehicles), there wouldn't be much room to skimp on maintenance. I think there's a great deal more demand out there that is lost due to the smaller number of medallions. Try finding a cab at 830am on a rainy weekday, or when it's 20 degrees. the fact that the number of medallions has gone from 1300 to 1800 since the '30's is ridiculous.
*eyeroll*
Oh yeah, because the cabs now are maintained beautifully now that the rates aren't dictated by supply and demand...
(eyerolling in the direction of folks who can make the above argument with a straight face, not in the direction of the messenger!)
Interesting
Trucking was comprehensively deregulated in 1994. Accidents with big trucks have dropped significantly since then:
http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811158.pdf
And our deregulated airline industry has been quite safe for a while. No major crashes in the US in years.
I'm less concerned with
I'm less concerned with skimpy maintenance, than I am with traffic problems if too many cabs are jockeying for street hails.
The reason this failed in
The reason this failed in practice is that when the supply is fixed with medallions, the city's taxi commission develops a cozy relaionship with the medallion owners.
In an environment where cab owners are a fluctuating set, the commission is more likely, to, oh, do it's job and protect the public's safety. Case in point, the US DOT, which has done far better in regulating truck safety standards after trucking deregulated.
HEY NOW! That's OUR lunch
HEY NOW! That's OUR lunch money you're talkin' about there.
Not exactly a principled
Not exactly a principled defense, but since the medallions do have a substantial market value now, the government can't simply eliminate them without compensating the owners due to the principle of eminent domain. At about 2000 medallions, with a value of $250,000 each, that's a half billion dollars that the city would need to pony up to eliminate them.
While I don't like the medallion system any more than anyone else, I can think of many better things to spend a half billion dollars on than fixing the cab situation.
Don't be so sure
Releasing more medallions into the market or eliminating the cap altogether isn't the same thing as a taking. The medallion owners assume risk in ownership, similar to the way stock owners assume risks in their investments, there's always a risk that the stock will split. The same principle applies here.
I can't see that any medallion holder...
.. would have any sort of enforceable right to block Boston from issuing additional medallions (or to claim compensation for the drop in the value of their own medallions in the event of the issuance of additonal medallions).
Exactly
However, we need to remember that some of these owners are guys who struggled to save enough money to buy their own medallion and free themselves from the Tutunjians of the world. They paid a lot of money for these and it wouldn't be reasonable to screw them because of the half dozen or so dirtbags that control the local industry.
There's actually a fair and easy fix - I offered to sit down with Cohen years ago to give him my idea for free - and never heard back. Now these arrogant scum can either fix it themselves or pay me generously but fairly for the consulting work. I don't expect the phone to ring any time soon.
Uber
I used to take uber half of the time and cabs the other half. After reading this I will be using uber 100% of the time. The extra money spent is well worth it after hearing these horror stories. If our next mayor has to fortitude to abolish the medallion system I will gladly go back to using cabs
Here's another interesting
Here's another interesting tidbit in the "Taxi titan’s rise began with just one cab" article:
Boston Cab's cars get state inspections from EJT Management. Which is owned by the same guy.
When they were accused of fraudulently passing their own cars which should have failed emissions, all the Registry did was suspend their inspection service for 30 days.
List the best drivers on the web and how to order their cab...
List the best drivers on the web and how to order their cab number !
a) Somerville Green Cab http://www.greenandyellowcab.com is the best taxi operation around the metropolitan area with even a bit of a less expensive rate.
b) Lost and Found service for Somerville Green Cab does need improving.
c) There's a Somerville Green Cab driver who refuses to listen to directions for a route to the destination.
Somerville Green Cab
You mean Somerville "gee, they put these nice lanes all over the city just for our ignorant and lazy asses to park in" Green cab? Not giving them my business until they learn what the terms "driveway" "parking space" and "loading zone" mean.
And no excuses - I always see them idling away in bike lanes when there is a fucking space 100 feet or less away!