Pennsylvania Justice

A Johnstown man was sentenced Tuesday for running an illegal taxi service. [...] A judge sentenced him to 15 months probation and community service. He will also have to pay $900 in fines and is not allowed to operate a cab or even wear a hat that says “Taxi Cab.”

Johnstown Man Sentenced For Running Illegal Taxi Service [WJAC-TV]

Cabbies Show Their Feelings On Passengers

Yes, here’s one that would be impossible to make up: Metro reports today the new president of the new taxi workers’ union is Ron Blount, who faces simple assault and false imprisonment charges next month.

As anyone who has ridden a cab in the last year or so has already guessed, Blount is alleged to have struck a rider after she wanted to pay with a credit card.

Blount says he’s innocent of the assault charges. One driver told Metro the following: “We fully believe he’s innocent and will beat the charges.” Pun intended, I assume.

United cabbies have elected driver accused of assault [Metro]
Photo by kiteflier, Creative Commons license

Thieves Becoming More Benevolent

In recent weeks, several passengers have been robbed by a fake cab driver. (The fake cabby was driving a car with white lettering and a passenger in the front. The driver is a “a black male who was clean shaven” in his mid-20s, so that narrows it down a bit.)

The robbers m.o.: Drive your victims to ATMs, make them take out money, then give them $20 for cab fare home. Aww, isn’t that nice? These guys may steal your wallet and your money, but at least they don’t leave you stranded on a streetcorner for a worse robber to beat you up. Get robbed and get a $20 tip.

Apparently, though, this trend is spreading. Check out a crime log entry from Lower Makefield: “100 block Penn Valley Terr., 8 p.m., Tue, Beach Cruiser bicycle from unlocked garage, left in its place was HARCO Backtrail bicycle, $50 value.”

I can only assume this is some sort of multi-level marketing scam. You steal one bike and exchange it with a better bike you’ve stolen, then you repeat until… well, I dunno, until you have a dirtbike or something else cool. Also, a HARCO bicycle sounds much cooler than a “Beach Cruiser.”

Public safety log for Oct. 11 [Bucks County Courier Times]
Penn student a victim of local taxi robberies [Daily Pennsylvanian]

What If They Held A Taxi Strike And Nobody Noticed?

Apparently, the two-day taxi stike ended in one-day, a stunning efficiency you normally don’t get out of your strikers. Usually two-day strikes last two days, at least. But by proving they can accomplish a two-day strike in just one day, the taxi drivers in Philadelphia have certainly proven the can be more efficient than anyone else.

Of course, the strike may have been cut short because nobody really noticed the cabs were striking. Cabs picked people up in Center City, limos covered the rest and nobody anywhere else takes cabs since they have a car or live along the EL or something. Erhm, I guess. Anyway, no more taxi strike!

According to every taxi driver in the city, the credit card machine is currently down.

Anyone listening? [Metro]

Taxi Drivers Hoping For 0% Approval Rating

By now, you’ve probably ridden in a Philadelphia cab and attempted to pay with a credit card. And, if you’ve done that, you’ve most certainly been told by the cab driver the credit card machine is broken, or you’ve been yelled at for not informing the driver you were intending to pay with a credit card, because, you know, that’s a rule of some sort.

Of course, the credit card machines aren’t broken 24/7, the drivers just don’t want to deal with ‘em. And so, to protest these evil credit card machines (and GPS systems), Philadelphia taxi drivers have begun a two-day strike.

The strike is a joint action in solidarity with cab drivers in New York City. Philadelphia cabs already have the GPS/credit card system installed, while New York cabs will be making the switch over soon. The GPS system does go out somewhat frequently, but the real reason for the strike is cab drivers don’t want to accept credit cards for some reason (they have to report tips accurately?) and they’re being forced to.

Anyway, it’s okay if cabs are on strike; now you can hail a limo!

Linda J. Miller, Parking Authority spokeswoman, said the executive order allowing the city’s 161 limousine companies to fill the vacuum left by striking taxi drivers was also used to cope with a one-day strike in May 2006 that left about 100 cabs operating.

Miller said that the limousines would respond to anyone hailing them on the street but that there would be no central dispatching as with taxis. Anyone calling for a ride would have to pick a limousine company from the phone book.

But here’s the question: Do limos have those credit card machines? Probably not.

2-day taxi strike has begun [Inquirer]

Taxi Bandits Strike Center City

A couple of Philadelphia robbers have turned this city into a Michael Mann movie:

Philadelphia police say at least two men are responsible for a wave of robberies and attempted robberies at center city convenience stores during which the perpetrator escaped in the back of a taxicab.

Detectives say in each case the cab driver may have unwittingly helped the bandit. Police speculate that the robbers may have asked cabbies to stop at a store for cigarettes, robbed the store, then hopped back into the cab to continue the trip.

Well, it’s almost like a Michael Mann movie. The cops say it’s two different people doing this scheme, so Center City Wawas are probably a fun place to be for the rest of the week.

Phila. Police Say Robbers Arrive and Leave in Taxicabs [KYW 1060]

Shitty Philly Cabs Cause Extra Buck Surcharge

Parking tickets went up five bucks this week, a hike done because people were just getting parking tickets instead of parking in, uh, garages. (Kinda.)

But, although City Council approved a $5 surcharge, there’s also an extra buck surcharge from the state legislature:

Corinne O’Connor, head of on-street parking, says the extra buck is needed because the Parking Authority now oversees taxis and limos in the city:

“We did not receive any kind of funding for staffing and the cost it takes to run that department, so the dollar surcharge has helped with that.”

O’Connor says beyond the goal of the original increase is not to raise cash, but to spur turnaround at the meters.

So, right: Taxis are pretty shitty, and so the state needs to charge extra to make sure they stay that way. Thanks, Pennsylvania.

Most City Parking Fines Up by $5 — Actually, $6 [KYW 1060]

Leftovers: Fashion Show Fight

• Yes, this is what the man suspected in the death of police officer Gary Skerski was wearing when he robbed the bar. His skin, police say, is not quite as dark as the mannequin to the left. [6 ABC]

• Hundres of police responded to a fight that broke out after a fashion show (like rock concerts, fashion shows attract violence) at Dobbins High. Hundreds of criminals then robbed hundreds of houses. [NBC 10]

• Jon Corzine, meet Kevin Spacey. Surely, this meeting of the minds will one day produce some of the finest crap New Jersy commercials. [Deadline Hollywood Daily]

• Surprise! The taxi drivers don’t want to be tracked every second they’re at work. Taxi passengers are planning a protest, attempting to get those cool sports ticker ads they have on top of taxis into the backseats of them. [Philly IMC]

Cabbies Strike, Deliver Cheap Limo Rides

It’s been a little over a month since the last strike — which was kind of a non-strike anyway — so the cab drivers of Philadelphia decided that, hey, what better day to hold a one-day strike than Election Day!

Actually, the strike is timed to coincide with the AIIM Expo at the Convention Center, an event with 20,000 visitors expected to attend. (The AIIM Expo, as you might have guessed, is an exposition of AIIMs.) The cab drivers are angry because of new regulations requiring GPS in all taxis and forcing cabs to be shut down at 250,000 miles.

They’re having a rally now at Dilworth Plaza, complaining about the aforementioned GPS and mileage restrictions, but, as you all know, I’m sure the city of Philadelphia will rally around these cabbies and they’ll get what they want. Erhm, wait.

On the plus side, KYW 1060 reports this interesting fact:

The Parking Authority is allowing limousines to operate as cabs for Tuesday only, in order to pick up the slack.

A ride in a limo for the price of a cab? Count me in!

1,600 Phila. taxi drivers on strike today [Inky]
Philadelphia Taxi Drivers Strike Over GPS Tracking [KYW 1060]
April 10: Hacks Do Hackjob On Travel Plans

Hacks Do Hackjob On Travel Plans

If you’re looking to head somewhere in town today, you better have a car or (even worse) ride SEPTA, since there aren’t going to be too many taxis out there today.

In a protest of new regulations, the Philadelphia Brotherhood of Unified Taxi Drivers and Owners are striking for 12 hours today in protest of new regulations. The regulations bar cabs with 250,000 miles or more on them, and also require all cabs to have GPS in them by October.

While I understand the cab drivers’ plight — last time I checked, gas was about $4 a pint — I don’t know if this strike is going to do much. You see, there’s only about 400 members in the Brotherhood. And there are 5,000 cabs cab drivers in this city and 1,600 cabs. Five thousand! Sixteen hundred! Think about that next time you’re standing on Walnut Street in 20 degree weather and you can’t get a taxi.

If you can’t find a cab today, the head of the Brotherhood has something to say to you, according to KYW 1060: “[Muhammad] Chungthai apologizes in advacne to customers for the inconvenience.”

It’s cool, Muhammad. Just don’t make everyone ride SEPTA again. Or don’t get all 5,000 cabbies to strike.

Update: My mistake. There are 5,000 cab drivers in this city and 1,600 cabs. Thanks to JS for writing in.

Phila. cabdrivers plan protest today [Inky]
Phila. Cabbies Threaten Work Stoppage [KYW 1060]
Photo by lunchtimemama