2012 – The year of the dragon

This year will see many momentous decisions made relating to the taxi industry.

According to the City website, by mid-year a staff report will be presented. This report will give clear direction as to what path the industry will travel for the next decade or so.

Many senior staff members of the MLS have already retired or will soon, thus ushering in a new era of fresh administrators who will no doubt seek to place their stamp and style on our industry.

Our industry is not exempt from consolidation of businesses as is going on throughout the world. What this means to us is the consolidation of the various brokerages in our industry into fewer hands. As economies of scale become more and more important, smaller brokerage operators will simply not be able to compete. This is the reality of life.

As the taxi industry moves control into fewer and fewer hands it becomes increasingly important to ensure that independent operators are encouraged to continue to operate. Should the Ambassadors be converted, we should make sure that these newly created standard plates stay in as many hands as possible and not be allowed to be concentrated into a few wealthy peoples’ hands. Concentration of plate ownership into a few hands is not good for the industry or the general public. Owner operators serve the public better, are better at maintaining their vehicles and reflect a pride of ownership. Shift drivers who have no vested interest in the vehicle they operate fail to exude these qualities.

As an industry we should keep the By-Law that permits only one plate per owner and doesn’t allow for corporate ownership of plates. On the other hand, the City should recognize the plate of the owner as an asset of the plate owner. This will allow shift drivers to be able to borrow money as a loan from a bank and thus allow shift drivers to become owners if they so desire. This will keep the industry fluid and allow shift drivers to improve their lot in life.

Plate Owners should be allowed to lease multiple plates and sublease them to drivers. The criteria for sub-leasing plates should be ownership of a plate. Only plate owners should be allowed to be agents and of course they should have to register with the MLS. This would mean agents have a vested interest in the industry and cannot be fly-by-night operators. Currently some agents have no investment in the industry and prey upon hard working drivers with impunity. Plate rental should be ONLY for the plate, the vehicle should be the property of the lessee.

No brokerage employee should be allowed to be an agent. Brokerages should be solely Call centers and be prohibited from all other taxi activities. Some Brokerages force their cab clients into business activities which have nothing to do with receiving orders over the radio or computer. They use their position to leverage themselves into other profitable ventures while threatening their cab clients with dismissal from their brokerage if they don’t sign up or go along with non-dispatch activities. The MLS must review these issues and stop these activities – after all, Brokerages are licensed and fall under the direction and control of the MLS.

Currently, although the By-Law specifically states that brokerages cannot own or operate plates, some Brokerages are in fact offering package deals to lessees including radio dues, plates, cab insurance and even car payments. This clearly violates the spirit of the By-Law and places the Brokerage in a position of control which the By-Law was specifically passed in order to prevent. Brokerages are moving from Call centers to one stop shopping centers with associated control and domination.

The question is: “Is this in the best interest of the industry and the cab travelling public?”

The iTaxiworkers have raised their monthly dues from $25/month to $35/month, or 40 percent. They have also announced that from Feb.1, 2012, any ticket fighting they become involved in will be done so for an additional fee. The additional fee will be announced later. For more information feel free to call the iTaxiworkers or visit them on Cecil St.

Feb.14th is traditionally celebrated as Valentine’s Day. The only down side to this celebration is the cost of roses skyrockets. Good luck and enjoy yourselves. Feb. 20th is our newly created holiday, called Family Day.

Louis Seta, A 1275, wishing everyone a fun February.

Point of View
2012 – The year of the dragon

Cab Stand
T.O.’s traffic problems demandcollaborative, creative solutions