INDUSTRY IN REVIEW

By Don McCurdy

I wouldn't do that.

Normally, I don't comment on taxi business outside the US, but since its London, where all of the "real" taxicab drivers live, I couldn't help myself.

First, never confuse a London taxi with a private hire car generically called "minicabs." For a Black Cab driver that's a bit like comparing a brain surgeon with the local butcher.

Now that all that's settled, it's been reported that John Griffin, the head of one of London's largest minicab firms, took exception to taxis getting to use the bus express lanes while minicabs weren't allowed to use the bus lanes. Well, he filed a lawsuit, and you thought it was just us.

The sparks really started to fly when John told Addison Lee drivers to use the bus lanes despite the current status being limited to taxicabs. Well, that brought on a rash of harrumphing from Transport for London, the government agency responsible for transport system in London. With the usual threats back and forth the battle still rages. The latest casualty is the contract Addison Lee had to provide transportation services to the government.

Now, John's probably a pretty bright guy, but I have to think that instructing your drivers to ignore the law may not be John's best business plan. Yeah, I get the idea that you want to force the issue, but it seems that you've only succeeded in costing your drivers business.

How'd that happen?

Reports out of Houston, Texas are that Texas Taxis has signed a contract with MTData out of Australia for new taxi dispatch hardware and software for their entire operation. That doesn't seem like such an earth shattering event unless you know the history of the relationship between Texas Taxis and Digital Dispatch Systems (DDS.)

Way back when a company called Mobile Data International sold a dispatch system to the Greater Houston Transportation Company (GHTC) for their Austin affiliate, American Cab, a bright young, even I was young then, software engineer hooked up with GHTC management and created a white paper for a dispatch system that became the leading dispatch product in North America. That relationship continued over twenty years with various software and hardware upgrades over those years. Than was then, this is now.

Sources close to the deal said that DDS was given every opportunity to secure the deal but MTData's presentation won, hands down. I only got a glimpse of MTData's hardware and haven't seen an operating system to evaluate their software, but I know most of the group behind it. DDS had best learn to listen to their customers or their shareholders will have the management group walking the plank.

For whom?

A recent report out of DC, which I'm starting to believe means Dysfunctional Cabs, is that 'driver on customer violence' has been escalating. Having driven a cab I can recall a few times that violence crossed my mind, but it seems that DC Taxicab Commission Chairman Ron Linton has figured out the cure, panic buttons.

Now, I don't want to rain on any bureaucratic solution parade or anything but did anybody call around to investigate how panic buttons worked out in other cities? If so, they would have found out how absolutely useless they really are.

Toronto had some wonderful statistics on various safety devices and found that the panic buttons were more trouble than they were worth. Their studies showed that over 95% of the alarms were false.

Now, I don't know the call load of the DC police, but I would venture to guess that after a few hundred false alarms their response to taxicab drivers will be worse than it is now. The other fact I found amazing was that Ron thinks a panic button will help with driver on passenger violence. Who is the panic button for, Ron, the driver or the passenger?

This just in.

According to reports the Portland Oregon city council is set to vote on new measures to actually enforce their taxicab laws. According to the report, the drivers have been complaining for years about unlicensed operators poaching their fares. I guess the city just got tired of hearing about it and finally decided to do something about the problem.

There are others whining that the city is protecting the taxicab industry by not allowing sedan services to operate at taxicab rates, but sedan services aren't interested in providing taxicab style services to any but the best trips. When you see those limos and upscale sedans picking up $5.00 grocery runs drop me a note and maybe I'll change my opinion.

Uh oh.

As predicted, Uber has hit a bit of a snag in Las Vegas. While I didn't predict Vegas, Baby, I did predict that there would be some issues with providing on demand service in a highly regulated industry without some hoop jumping.

Part of what makes the taxicab industry as complicated as it can be in some cities are the regulations. A taxicab isn't necessarily defined as only on demand by flagging. There is a considerable market in most cities for dispatched taxicabs which appears to be exactly what Uber is doing. I am still amazed that regulators in cities where Uber operates haven't stepped in to wet their beaks. Sooner or later the taxicab industry will complain and regulations will be enforced. I'd be looking close at any new markets. But that's just me.

Stakeholders?

Various city regulatory bodies propose numerous changes to taxicab regulations and they all bandy about the term "stakeholders." Well, what exactly does that mean? In most jurisdictions it means the city, the taxicab drivers, taxicab owners, medallion owners and the hospitality industry.

The assumption is that the regulators are there representing the interests of the citizens. When considering entry methods and a host of other serious issues there seems to be a disconnect between what the public needs and what the regulators want.

Clean, comfortable, safe taxicabs at a reasonable price is what the public needs. Whiz bang GPS advertising screens, "green cabs" and "cabs of tomorrow" not so much. It has long been my opinion that regulators would do well to keep the cost to the consumer foremost in their minds when they start down the road of what's best for the public.

Like anything else, there are choices to be made as to to how one gets transported. Put the price out of reach and the industry suffers. New regulations that "won't cost the city anything" are usually paid by the rider or the driver. Limit entry, get prices high and driver income low and you'll end up with a deteriorating industry which is what you have in numerous cities in the US.



If you have any comments regarding this or any of my articles please feel free to contact me at dmc@mcacres.com. —dmc