December 23, 2011
A judge is being asked by attorneys of the district to dismiss a case filed against the city. The said case was initiated by the taxi driver associations saying that the city does not regulate the fees that operators may charge riders legally. This leads to a lot of drivers earning much lesser compared to their counterparts that are located in other areas. The lawyers who represent the city said that the claims of the other party lack merit.
The suit that was filed in September stated that the city was not able to adjust the rates by which taxi drivers will be able to charge since the time that the system was changed to a meter system in 2008 from a zone system. The suit also contented that the District was not able to appoint to the commission, a representative of the taxicab industry, which was required legally.
Senior assistant attorney general, Daniel Rezneck, representing the Taxicab driver operations, didn’t make a comment, but as found in court documents however, it stated that the commission operates lawfully, and the decision of the commission with regards to setting the rates is a political question, which could not be resolved in lawsuits in court.
It also noted that there were changes in the practices of the Taxicab Commission in recent weeks. Some of the changes include eradicating the maximum fee cap of $19 on intracity fares. They were also asking for the commissioner’s resignation whose term limit has already expired.
