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City Council Passes Taxi Laws to Curb Crooked Cabbies

By DNAinfo Staff on June 10, 2010 9:13am

The City Council passed a trio of bills on Wednesday aimed at preventing taxi scams.
The City Council passed a trio of bills on Wednesday aimed at preventing taxi scams.
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Wikimedia Commons/Uris

By Yepoka Yeebo

DNAinfo Reporter/Producer

MANHATTAN — Crooked cabbies came under the cross hairs Wednesday when the City Council green-lit a set of laws to track taxi drivers’ every turn to ensure passengers are not taken for a ride.

The first measure will create more transparency in cab drivers’ travels by outfitting their vehicles with equipment to record and store all fare data, including passenger pickup and drop-off locations, and make the information available to riders.

“The yellow cab is a New York City symbol, and we at the council want to ensure that this symbol is not one of corruption and scamming activity,” said City Council speaker Christine Quinn. “This is a bill that will keep your next taxi ride on the high road, making sure that riders pay the right price for their trips."

The legislation was introduced after TLC officials discovered that thousands of passengers had been gouged by cabbies to the tune of $8 million for charging out-of-city rates on local trips.

The second law requires the city Taxi and Limousine Commission to post a monthly online report detailing passenger complaints and subsequent TLC enforcement actions.

The third measure requires riders to be informed of their right to a cab with a working E-Z Pass to protect against drivers who use cash lanes to move slower and collect higher fares at toll locations.

One bill would have taxis details of every trip and make the data available to riders.
One bill would have taxis details of every trip and make the data available to riders.
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DNAinfo/Jim Scott