Please reply YES to this post if you want to receive occasional emails from me concerning my efforts to promote and help improve the San Francisco taxi industry. If you do, I’ll subscribe you to the TaxiTalk,info email list, a listserv powered by Electric Embers.
Also, please consider giving me feedback by Monday night, Oct. 19, on the latest draft of the first issue of the TaxiTalk.info newsletter (see below), which I will make available to drivers to distribute to passengers, businesses, and the general public.
The first issue will be two columns on four pages on an 8-½ X 11 sheet of paper folded in half. Future issues may be longer with a greater variety of content.
How many copies are printed will depend on how much financial support I receive. You can donate by visiting http://TaxiTalk.info or giving me a donation in person. Regular financial reports on income and expenses will be posted on that website.
More information about the newsletter is included below under “About TaxiTalk.info.”
Yours,
Wade Hudson
TaxiTalk.info
Wade Hudson, Editor October XX, 2015
The State of the Industry
We’ve come full circle. During the Great Depression, desperate workers, unregulated, flooded city streets with cars-for-hire. In response, city governments regulated the industry and limited the number of taxis. Now, once again, in a weak economy, an excessive number of cars-for-hire congest streets and pollute the air. Legitimized by a state government that undermined local control, many of those vehicles, like Uber, are de facto taxis, loosely regulated, and driven by inexperienced drivers.
Prior to Uber, drivers were screened, trained, and fired when necessary. Companies were required to carry substantial insurance. Drivers could pick up fares only in their own city. Fares were set at a level that enabled drivers to earn a good living. Many drivers stuck with driving and steadily became better, more informed “ambassadors of tourism.” Visitors often commented on the high quality taxi service in San Francisco and our colorful cab drivers, many of whom were artists. Companies could afford to buy new cars every three years. The City mandated that new vehicles use clean energy, and subsidized the paratransit program for seniors and disabled. The taxi medallion system, though flawed, worked rather well as a mix of public regulation and private enterprise.
That system had many problems, particularly not enough taxis. The City failed to document the need for more taxis and greed led drivers to effectively oppose putting more taxis in operation. The excess of demand for service exceeded the supply of taxis, which prompted drivers to pick up “flags” on the street rather than take more time to serve residences. The proliferation of cab companies made it difficult to establish a centralized dispatch system. Drivers’ status as independent contractors made supervision and discipline more difficult.
Uber has shaken up the industry, demonstrated the value of new technology, and prompted the City and cab companies to improve service. Customer complaints are being investigated more seriously and disciplinary action is more common. The City has investigated systematically and found good response times for calls for service in various neighborhoods. The Flywheel app, “Uber for taxis,” is being enthusiastically embraced by consumers who like getting experienced, screened drivers and dislike Uber’s surge pricing. Yellow Cab and other companies are working to improve their own phone apps. The MTA’s Taxi Service Services Director Kate Toran is bolstering these improvements.
But the industry is shaky. Because fewer drivers are driving, companies are barely breaking even, cutting back on maintenance, and putting new cars onto the street more slowly. Drivers are making less money. Many retirement plans have been devastated. Turnover is higher, resulting in less experienced drivers.
San Francisco needs quality taxis, driven by professionals who become more skilled over time and take pride in their work. Hotels, restaurants, and other businesses need good service. Passengers prefer drivers who’ve undergone criminal background checks. Seniors and disabled need subsidized rides. Most San Franciscans know all that and support the taxi industry.
To sustain the industry, however, will require concentrated effort. Passengers and businesses need to speak up about how service needs to be improved, and drivers and companies need to listen. And everyone needs to encourage their elected representatives to re-establish local control. We need an alliance, a community, of passengers, drivers, companies, businesses, and community organizations to reduce congestion, minimize pollution, and improve taxi service.
Relying solely on the profit motive will not work. The more cars are on the street, the more money Uber makes. City streets are a public resource. The public and the government must regulate that resource wisely.
Taxi Talk aims to help with that mission by producing a newsletter that drivers can distribute to their passengers. We will inform readers about the issues and what it’s like to drive a taxi. And we will present proposals for how we can move forward, together.
[end of page one]
Zen Driving
[Forthcoming: a column by Herman Haluza]
Cabbie Joke
Told just before going down a steep San Francisco hill: “Don’t worry. My brakes usually work…. I haven’t lost very many passengers.”
Celebrity Encounter
During the very early stages of the 2000 Democratic Party Presidential primary campaign, after noticing their Southern accents, my four passengers and I discovered we were all from Arkansas. The woman in the front seat asked, “Are you familiar with Bill Clinton?” I said, “Yes.” She replied, “Will you vote for him?” Since he was my least favorite Democratic candidate, “I diplomatically replied, “If he gets the nomination.” She may have noticed my evasion, but replied, “Good.”
My Weirdest Tale
While parked at Yellow Cab waiting to give a driver a ride home, a teenager from the nearby Potrero Hill projects got into my cab around 2 am and told me to go to Hunter’s Point. Along the way, he mentioned he was wearing a wig. When we got near his destination, he told me to turn left. I noticed three teens standing at the corner. The street turned out to be a dead-end. He said to make a U-turn, park in front of a particular house, and honk three times. As soon as I did, a truck turned the corner coming toward us. Afraid of having my exit blocked and being robbed, I floored the accelerator and took off. My passenger said, “What are you doing!!!???” I ignored him. Driving as fast as I could, I noticed headlights in my rearview mirror on a car that seemed to be going equally fast. I turned and headed toward Candlestick Park. My passenger continued to ask me why I was doing what I was doing. After I no longer saw the headlights behind me, I pulled over and told him to get out, which caused him to absolutely freak out. “No, I can’t do that,” he said. “If I do, they will kill me. This is not my neighborhood.” I kept insisting and he kept refusing. Finally I gave up and drove back toward Yellow Cab. Once we got to Third and Evans, the edge of the Hunter Point’s neighborhood, he said, “Ok, I can get out now.” I pulled over and let him out, without asking for a dime.
Tip to passengers
When you wave for a taxi and the driver waves back or flashes his headlights, you have entered a contract. To get into another taxi that pulls up first is rude. In the meantime, the first driver may have declined to accept a radio call or allow another passenger to get into the cab.
Tip to drivers
If another taxi is stopped at a red light when you pull up alongside, allow it to remain in “first place” when the light turns green so long as it moves at a normal speed. Do not race it down the street.
Tip to businesses
When customers ask you to call for a taxi, ask them, “Can you wait ten minutes?” and comment, “Please don’t step out and flag down the first taxi that comes by.”
Tip to pedestrians
Especially when cars are waiting to turn the corner, the Don’t Walk signal means “Don’t Walk.” When drivers are unable to make the turn, traffic gets more congested and drivers get more frustrated, which endangers pedestrians. Be considerate.
[end of page two]
The “Uber Economy”
Steven Hill, a senior fellow at the highly regarded New America Foundation and author of Raw Deal: How the ‘Uber Economy’ and Runaway Capitalism Are Screwing American Workers, recently posted an op-ed on the San Francisco Chronicle website titled, “Keep Uber from becoming too much of a good thing.” In that piece, commented on how cars-for-hire flooded city streets during the 1930s:
The public and government officials cried out for relief. The policy response was what we know today as the taxi medallion system. Most major cities instituted regulations governing the number of cars, insurance, safety, background checks and more.
With ride-hailing’s popularity, it’s not hard to imagine how this new service could result in returning to the good ol’ days of too many drivers and inadequate consumer protection. How happy will customers be if they can hail a ride right away, but then are stuck in traffic for 40 minutes longer because the streets are jam-packed?
So whether the libertarian Uber model is successful is a key test that could shape the nation’s future. It could lead to ever more deregulation, in the name of some mythical “free enterprise” that is supposed to meet virtually every human need. The need to counter that mythology is urgent.
Uber Alles
Why did Uber founder Travis Kalanick call his company “uber,” even though the word is widely associated with Adolph Hitler? The German word translates as “over” or “above.” The phrase, “uber alles,” which means “ above everything else,” is included in the German national anthem. In 1883, the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche coined the term "Übermensch" (“supermen”) to describe a higher state of human evolution. Hitler used the term describe his vision of an Aryan master race.
As reported by Business Insider, the answer is that Kalanick was inspired by Ayn Rand, a devotee of Nietzsche. For a while, Kalanick's Twitter avatar was the cover of "The Fountainhead," one of Rand's novels. The hero of "The Fountainhead" is an utterly selfish, extremely individualistic rebel who flaunts society's norms. Kalanick’s opposition to regulation and his glorification of the free market are fully Randian. Greed is good and if you win, your deserve it. Catering to the masses is disparaged and labor unions are considered a threat to society.
These beliefs are reflected in many of Kalanick’s proclamations, including:
We’re in a political campaign, and the candidate is Uber and the opponent is an asshole named Taxi.
Some city-council people are really awesome, but most are uninspired. I meet with them as little as possible.
The government is telling us to shut down. And you can either do what they say or you can fight for what you believe.
State Update
Assembly Bill (AB) 1289 requires a comprehensive criminal background check for Transportation Network Companies (TNCs). It prohibits Uber, Lyft and others from hiring drivers convicted of sexual offense, DUI, non-felony violent crime, etc.. Any TNC that violates or fails to comply with it is subject to penalties from $500 to $50,000 for each offense. This bill passed unanimously through committee and the Assembly Floor. It is at the Senate Rules Committee and is expected to get a hearing next year.
Assembly Bill (AB) 1422 requires TNCs to participate in the DMV's pull-notice system to regularly check driving records regardless of whether the participating driver is an employee or an independent contractor. It easily passed through all committees and both the Assembly and Senate. Governor Jerry Brown recently signed it into law.
Senate Bill (SB) 372 prohibits TNCs and taxi companies from hiring registered sex offenders. It passed unanimously through the Public Safety Committee and the Appropriations Committee and is expected to get a hearing in January of 2016.
Assembly Bill (AB) 828 exempts TNCs from having to register commercially with the DMV. After passing easily through the Assembly Transportation Committee and Assembly Floor,with a strong presence of members from the taxi industry expressing opposition, it passed on a slim 6-5 vote at the Senate Transportation Committee. It may be get a hearing with the Senate Energy, Utilities and Communications Committee in early 2016.
Senator Ben Hueso, Chairman of the Energy, Utilities and Communications Committee, has considered having an interim hearing on the impact of TNCs on the public transportation industry. Public safety and lack of enforcement on TNCs are expected to be the topics in this hearing.
Taxi Talk will keep track of all the bills mentioned above and we'll let you know when the hearing at the Senate Energy Committee will take place. The mood towards TNCs may be changing for the better in Sacramento.
The Limit “Ride-Sharing” Cars Petition
forthcoming
City Update
forthcoming
About TaxiTalk.info
This newsletter, to be distributed by drivers to their passengers, is intended to help develop an alliance of passengers, drivers, taxi companies, businesses, community organizations, and others who want to help promote and improve the taxi industry in San Francisco. Many, if not most, San Franciscans see the need for good, well-regulated taxi service. By providing timely, accurate, relevant information, the hope is that this newsletter will help San Franciscans give voice to their concerns, especially to elected officials and City administrators. Future newsletters may be longer with additional regular features and will include specific proposals for action, including a Passenger Appreciation Day during which passengers could provide feedback and suggestions for improvements. Readers are encouraged to submit content. If you want to meet in person to work on the newsletter together, please email me at <wade@wadehudson.net>. A graphic designer who can produce a logo and masthead is a particular need.
How many copies are printed will depend on how much financial support is provided by interested parties. You can donate by visiting http://TaxiTalk.info. Regular financial reports on income and expenses will be posted on that website.
Since 1987, I’ve driven taxi part-time. In 2000, I got my medallion and joined Yellow Cab Cooperative as a co-owner. For almost fifty years, my primary commitment has been community organizing dedicated to fundamental social change. (A brief bio is at http://wadehudson.net/.) Organizing, activism, and writing is in my blood. I feel morally obligated to do what I can to help make the world a better place. Now that Uber has destroyed my retirement plan, my self-interest motivates me to focus on improving taxi service (so I can sell my medallion as soon as possible and retire). The positive response to my efforts thus far encourages me to produce this newsletter.
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
[end of page four]
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