Gaylord Hotel Broke Law, May Do It Again

Posted on July 28, 2013 by TheFightBack
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PG cabbies hold press conference at county offices

The Taxi Link airs Sat. 7-8 pm on WUST 1120 AM. Listen here: 

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The week began with Prince George’s County cabbies, the AFL-CIO and the local chapter of the NAACP saying Gaylord National Resort had run afoul of county law on July 17. By week’s end, county officials were saying the same thing.

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Posted in Gentrification, Labor/Jobs, Prince George's County, Taxicab | Comments Off on Gaylord Hotel Broke Law, May Do It Again

Cabbie Safety in the Spotlight

Posted on July 28, 2013 by TheFightBack
Solomon Okoroh's casket. Photo courtesy of Russ Ptacek

Solomon Okoroh’s casket. Photo courtesy of Russ Ptacek

The Taxi Link airs Sat. 7-8 pm on WUST 1120 AM. Listen here: 

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The movement for greater awareness surrounding violence against cab drivers recently received a boost from an unlikely source. In a series of sting operations, WUSA9 reporter Russ Ptacek has portrayed D.C. cabbies as discriminatory, without mentioning the dangers drivers face. But that changed last week with Ptacek’s report on the funeral service for Solomon Okoroh.

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Taxi Smart Meters May Face Uber Problems

Posted on July 21, 2013 by TheFightBack
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Yellow Cab general manager Roy Spooner discusses the Modern Taximeter System on ABC7

The Taxi Link airs Sat. 7-8 pm on WUST 1120 AM. Listen here: 

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By Sept. 1, 42 days from now, all District cabs must install the Modern Taximeter System (MTS), which includes a credit card reader. But it was only Wednesday that the D.C. Taxicab Commission voted (yet again) on permanent rulemakings for MTS, leaving companies and cabbies with insufficient time to successfully make the switch, according to driver and company testimony at this week’s taxi commission meeting.

“You’ve written a regulation but you’re not looking at the facts on the street,” Yellow Cab general manager Roy Spooner told the commissioners. “I got the official go-ahead yesterday [to install MTS] and this morning I got a note that there was a bug with it.”  Continue reading →

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Debating Cabbie Safety and Discrimination

Posted on July 14, 2013 by TheFightBack
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WUSA 9 reporter Russ Ptacek

The Taxi Link airs Sat. 7-8 pm on WUST 1120 AM. Listen here: 

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Should a cab driver be forced to pick up a passenger even if he feels his safety is in jeopardy? The law, and WUSA 9’s Russ Ptacek, say this is a risk drivers are required to take.

“These are people who have chosen to do jobs where there are risks,” said Ptacek. “We can’t put ourselves in the role of choosing who we’re going to serve.”  Continue reading →

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National Harbor’s Invisible Men

Posted on July 14, 2013 by TheFightBack
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photo by Tami Gragert

Nestled along the shores of the Potomac River, just over the D.C. line in Prince George’s County, is a privately-owned $3 billion resort and mini-city, that’s growing.

The Peterson Company likely couldn’t have built National Harbor without hundreds of millions in taxpayer dollars invested in the harbor’s roads and other infrastructure needs.

The public investment was worth it, officials explained at the time, because it would bring jobs. But fast-forward five years and the promise of local jobs seems a distant one, at least when it comes to taxis.  Continue reading →

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Change to Come, Says Taxi Chair

Posted on July 14, 2013 by TheFightBack
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A driver asks Linton a question at the town hall

The Taxi Link airs Sat. 7-8 pm on WUST 1120 AM. Listen here: 

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At a standing-room-only town hall Wednesday, D.C. Taxicab Commission Chairman Ron Linton told cab drivers that the commission will make changes in how it handles complaints against them. Drivers say the present system, which can result in large fines and even suspension or revocation of their licenses, lacks due process. “We’re going to tighten up the process,” Linton said.  Continue reading →

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Taxi chair agrees to town hall

Posted on July 7, 2013 by TheFightBack
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Photo courtesy of foxbaltimore.com

The Taxi Link airs Sat. 7-8 pm on WUST 1120 AM. Listen here: 

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D.C. taxi chair Ron Linton has agreed to do a town hall with The Taxi Link (details below). “I appreciate this opportunity,” Linton said. “I’m really looking forward to [it] and I hope there’s a good turnout.” Linton is attending Wednesday’s town hall despite concerns over The Taxi Link’s recent show focusing on the complaint process against drivers, an issue that’s sure to come up.  Continue reading →

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Taxi commission to cabbies: Pay up or else

Posted on June 30, 2013 by TheFightBack
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D.C. taxi leaders Haimanot Bizuayehu and Negede Abebe

The Taxi Link airs Sat. 7-8 pm on WUST 1120 AM. Listen here: 

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Without being informed of the specifics of what they’re accused of, cab drivers say they can be summoned to the D.C. Taxicab Commission and given the option of making a payment, at times $500, to make their charges disappear. “If you want this thing to go away, just pay this amount of money and then we’ll cancel it, we’ll dismiss the case,” taxi leader Haimanot Bizuayehu said, describing what drivers can be told by the commission.  Continue reading →

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Gaylord hotel gets hybrids, protests and a flash mob

Posted on June 23, 2013 by TheFightBack
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Taxi drivers protesting outside Gaylord hotel

The Taxi Link airs Sat. 7-8 pm on WUST 1120 AM. Listen here: 

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The protests outside Gaylord National grew larger this week as cab drivers and supporters stepped up their demand for a taxi stand. Instead of complying with the request, Gaylord’s transportation vendor, the French multinational corporation Veolia, introduced a new line of more affordable Hybrid vehicles meant to compete directly with taxis. “Since the hybrid cars started working, none of our taxi drivers [can] get a job from this area,” driver leader Fisseha Tesfaye told The Taxi Link at Friday’s protest.  Continue reading →

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The Taxi Link: Aurora Vasquez discusses driver organizing in Prince George’s, Alexandria and Arlington

Posted on June 16, 2013 by TheFightBack

Screen Shot 2013-06-16 at 11.47.30 AMThe Taxi Link airs Sat. 7-8 pm on WUST 1120 AM. Listen here: 

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Aurora Vasquez is an attorney, driver advocate and organizer. Over the past decade she’s played an instrumental role in successful cab driver struggles in the D.C. area, first in Alexandria then in Prince George’s County.  “[This fight is] about cab drivers’ right to seek and obtain economic opportunity without any unnecessary barriers,” Vasquez told The Taxi Link. “It’s an economic justice issue.”

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