IATR — IN FOCUS
by Matthew W. Daus, Esq.
President, International Association
of Transportation Regulators
Distinguished Lecturer, University Transportation Research Center, Region 2
Contact: mwdaus@juno.com





Daus Back at the TLC

I was very pleased to be welcomed back to the New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission (TLC) recently upon the expiration of my one year "cooling off" period. Under the City's ethics law, I am now permitted to interact with the TLC once again.

My successor, Commissioner David Yassky, was kind enough to provide a personal tour of the new TLC Headquarters at 33 Beaver Street in lower Manhattan. It was good to catch up with old colleagues and to see my friend in action at the first Commission meeting in the new office. Not only have I been impressed with Commissioner Yassky's energy and enthusiasm, but also his willingness to continue an "open door" policy and take on some of the toughest and long standing problems facing the industry. It's good to be back!


Windels, Marx - Expands Transportation Practice

I am also pleased to announce that my law firm, Windels, Marx, Lane & Mittendorf, LLP, has expanded the Transportation Practice Group that I have been heading for the last year to include over 23 attorneys with varied disciplines to handle virtually any legal or consulting matter encountered by private ground transportation and related businesses. An updated description of the services offered, as well as representative client matters successfully handled, can be accessed at the following link:

http://www.windelsmarx.com/practice.asp?id=49.




Visiting and touring the new Commission meeting room at TLC's relocated headquarters, former TLC Chairman Matthew Daus is joined by Kristen Madison (left) and Kaylie Lotzof (right), two of the more than 23 attorneys that work for the Transportation Practice Group at the law firm of Windels, Marx.  Mr. Daus is Chair of the Transportation Group at Windels Marx, a full service law firm of over 125 attorneys with offices in Manhattan and New Jersey.


Daus "Down Under"
Speaks at Australian Taxi Industry Conference

I was pleased and privileged to speak at the 2011 Australian Taxi Industry Association (ATIA) annual conference in Hobart, Tasmania. Hobart is the beautiful Capital city of Tasmania which lies to the far Southeast of the continent located right above Antarctica. Even greater than the natural beauty of the island is the hospitality and friendliness of the Australian people.

Though Australia is so distant and on the other side of the world from the U.S. and Europe, it was not surprising to see taxi industry and regulators alike face similar issues as those I have encountered elsewhere in my travels including wheelchair accessibility, clean air vehicles, credit card acceptance, and license processing times.

One major issue which appears to be unique to Australia right now is a significant nation wide driver shortage. While the Australian exchange rate was more favorable than other countries in past years this country was a prime destination for students, many of who would work as part time taxi drivers.

There are primarily two reasons causing the current problem:


Due to national politics this situation does not show any sign of being reversed by changes to the immigration laws.
The only potential solution appears to be a relaxation of the driving experience restrictions to streamline and speed up the licensing process, and/or provide drivers with significant wage increases so that workers from other professions may be attracted to the taxi industry.

Australia is regulated on a state level and deregulation is an issue in some states with some regulators intentionally seeking to devalue taxi permits. For instance, in Tasmania, after issuing taxi permits for monetary value, the government later passed a policy allowing drivers to purchase unlimited wheelchair accessible taxi permits at no monetary cost. This obviously has created some animosity among existing permit holders in Hobart.

At the conference, I delivered an extensive presentation on the advantages and disadvantages of regulation and medallion systems in the U.S. I also enjoyed serving on a panel discussion regarding international taxi industry trends with my friend and colleague, Taxi, Limousine & Paratransit Association (TLPA) President Robert McBride, as well as an industry operator from New Zealand.

While in Australia, I also addressed the National Transportation Regulators Group (NTRG), a regulator only gathering of all Australian state Transport Control Departments and Ministries. Additional members of the NTRG agreed to become more involved in the International Association of Transportation Regulators (IATR) and attend our 2011 Toronto conference.

Many thanks and kudos go out to ATIA Chairman John Bowe and Executive Director Blair Davies who did a fantastic job in hosting a thought provoking educational program and a wonderful conference overall.