They should just get a personal navigator and stick it in the window that's it!
GPS in taxis sparks protest
By: Drivers.com staff
Date: Monday, 24. September 2007
It's not known how many of New York's some 44,000 cabbies went on strike on September 5. By all accounts the strike was noticeable but not disruptive. Organizers called it "a success." City officials said the impact was minimal.
The strike was in protest to new regulations by New York's Taxi and Limousine Commission stipulating that "taxicab technology systems" must be in place in all cabs as they come up for inspection, starting October 1st this year. Philadelphia already has such regulation in place.
The technology consists of GPS tracking, data collection, automated trip recording, credit card processing, and a passenger information screen for weather, restaurants, text messages, advertising and so on.
Drivers are arguing that the systems will cost them money, affect their privacy, and result in problems from system crashes and GPS dead spots.
The strike was slated to last two days in New York and one day in Philadelphia. It's been reported that not many drivers struck and many of those that did returned early.
Cabbies can't afford strike
This is hardly surprising, says Graham Hodges, a history professor at Colgate University and the author of the book Taxi! A Social History of the New York City Cabdriver. "Cab driving historically has been heavily fragmented." Many drivers, Mr Hodges said, live day to day and just can't afford to strike.
"They don't have any strike fund," he added. "That's why you have a two-day strike rather than one that's extended. The fact that they got as many as they have is quite impressive."
Bhairavi Desai, executive director of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance said "The overwhelming majority of drivers are against this system, and there are serious setbacks this system is causing drivers."
GPS problems
Cab drivers in Philadelphia say they've been having serious problems with the technology. "It's been a nightmare," according to Michael Lieberman, fleet owner of the Olde City Taxi Company Inc. The system crashes so often, he says, and there are so many GPS signal dead spots in Philadelphia, that customers are bombarding him with complaints.
Lieberman reckons that the large number of tall buildings in Manhattan will cause even more serious problems. "You drive through the Battery Tunnel and there's no signal," said one driver who is already using GPS. "A mile through the tunnel and the meter doesn't register, so I lose that money."
Another driver related how a customer tried to use the machine to pay with his credit card. Twice, the machine failed to recognize his card, so he paid with cash. Later he was furious to find that, in addition to paying cash, he'd been charged twice by the credit card company.
"There are two issues. One is moral and constitutional, the other is financial," says Bill Lindauer of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance. "Under the system, drivers are tracked, they're spied upon. It's like we're under surveillance. Not only are we under surveillance we have to pay for the dubious privilege."
Better deal
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg argues that drivers are getting two fare increases and a reduced work load to compensate them for their acceptance of the tracking technology. However, the crux of the issue, says David Alexander, Principal Analyst for Automotive Systems, is that drivers were not participating in the benefits of the new technology.
Writing for TelematicsJournal.com, Alexander states:
"Some drivers have complained that the credit card processing clips about 5% off their income for fees, but they are missing the bigger picture that with credit cards (as demonstrated in many other industries) customers on average tip better and can spend more than just the cash they have on them. For taxi drivers that may mean more of the lucrative trips into the suburbs."
However, he adds, "The real issue, as usual, is money - The real outrage is that the drivers are being made to pay for the installation and monthly operating costs while not sharing in the advertising revenue being generated."
"That," writes Alexander, "is where the promoters of this new technology have erred. Had they developed their business model around capital funding recovered through advertising revenue, and maybe only passed on a nominal monthly operating fee, New York would have both happier cab drivers and passengers."
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Jay,
DK,
I agree with the David Alexander of the Telematics Journal. Since cabbies are what makes the system run they should have been included right from the beginning and given a share in whatever benefits came from the technology - including advertising revenue
Cody,
How can cab drivers afford the equipment in the first place if they have to live day, in day out?
