The city has refused to force its taxi fleet to be completely wheelchair-accessible. Instead, it is starting a dispatch system for the disabled that is housed in Connecticut and NY1′s Courtney Gross got an exclusive look at the operation and filed this report.
About 90 miles from the city, in suburban West Haven, Connecticut, a dispatcher sends wheelchair-accessible cabs to riders like Ronnie Raymond, a wheelchair use in Manhattan.
“I should have that option, just the way you do,” said Raymond.
They have farmed the system out to a Connecticut company, MetroTaxi, where dispatchers monitor accessible cabs from the station, watching their every move via GPS.
“People are used to dialing 311. They’ll simply work their way through the system to order an accessible taxicab and that will just transfer that number up to here,” said William Scalzi of MetroTaxi.
It is the city’s second attempt to start a dispatch system for the disabled. The first try at a system, four years ago, was a complete failure.
“There was a lot of miscommunication,” said Victor Calise of the Office For People With Disabilities.
This time, for the closest available driver to the disabled caller, a message will pop up showing where to go. That driver has to take the ride or face a fine.
The system is paid for by the cab industry. Cab drivers are being reimbursed for the time it takes to accept a dispatch and arrive at the passenger’s location.
“The taxi industry has not been accessible to people in wheelchairs. We’re fixing that,” said Taxi and Limousine Commissioner David Yassky.
For first around, it took a half hour to get a ride. The TLC hopes to cut that by more than half.
The system was really used, averaging eight rides a day.
In Connecticut, by 10 a.m. Friday, they had 12 calls logged. Albeit, the program is still being tested.
“We’ve had people get cabs in five or 10 minutes. We’ve also unfortunately had people wait a half-hour, because we just didn’t have a trained available cab in the area,” said Scalzi.
It may come down to the number of accessible cabs. The city has pledged to sell 2,000 new accessible medallions, but that plan is currently tied up in state court.
Right now, the city has only 233 accessible cabs. Passengers like Raymond remain cautiously optimistic.
Neither TLC or MetroTaxi have a specific launch date for the dispatch system. They do say it should be up and running in the next few weeks.
NYC outsourcing to a private Connecticut company!??!
What is really going on here…
Those drivers with the wheelchair-accessible cabs should have higher income, and should not face fines!
The fine in 1 time $500 and 3 points 2time $750 and4 point 3 time $1000 and out the bussines to me this is not fear
With these fines only an idiot would lease one of these cabs.
They should give the drivers incentives for this work, not threaten them. Threats will discourage them from taking on the chore. That being said, if the system works and the clients are serviced in a timely manner, once and for all there will be genuine knowledge of just how many taxis are needed for this. I would hope that there is an accurate audit of the numbers. There should be some way to oversee that these numbers aren’t exaggerated in order to show a need for more medallions than are necessary.
Soon as credit card processor meters & screens were installed with unnecessary GPS & screens, the cabbies should have foreseen GPS DISPATCH was coming, because the invasive, convoluted VeriFone & Creative Mobile Technologies systems were not necessary to process credit cards – advertising was shoved in too. The jackhammer wedge of computer dispatch into the NYC taxi system is called the ” wheelchair accessible dispatch. ” It won’t take long before complete computer dispatch is forced on NYC cabbies – it means the dispatchers will be running any statistics they want & identify cabs which have really good, hi money jobs. Dispatchers will know how to get those jobs thru cheating & livery, eveb if it means walking up to the house early & offering a discount. This dispatch cheating happens everywhere, and computers multiplied it. What did you expect from Bomberg & Yskey? Bomberg recently announced he wanted hospitals to lock up the baby formula, and no new mother could get it unless they asked for it. Bomberg apparently thinks it is his place to take control not only of women’s breasts & bodies, but of their newborns as well. Both Muslims & Jews share historic cultural similarities, both like to tell others how to live the most personal aspects of their lives. Taking control of the money in the NYC taxi industry is only a drop in the ocean. These guys don’t know their place. How many new Connecticut liveries going to start working NYC?
The CT company has 70 wheelchair accessible taxis in service and has a highly trained and proactive dispatch program geared towards serving those callers. Understand that they were chosen via the open RFP and after a NYC company who first was chosen backed out. With regards to them being paid more, they are! They get paid to pick up passengers via the dispatch program.
Sam and Meter Peter, the fines are the same for them as for any driver refusing a call. The system is more than fair and is working great according to both the drivers, the dispatch, and the riders I’ve spoken to.
Collecting up to $15 before you put your meter on and even collecting yet another $5 if the rider isn’t at the call…being able to pick up riders and accept jobs in other zones…what’s there to complain about?
Well 1 st off no NYC company/biz. wants to deal with a LOSING BIZ. As We all Know there Is NOT that MUCH wheelchair Bussieness as it is …And How come the BLIND people cant use that SYSTEM …I agrre with CrdtCardCabbie…The City actually WANTS Us to REPLACE the Access A Ride Vans Eventually is my Thinking as it OVERCHARGING NYC Millions !!!!! Yet THATS OK……Bloombag ….
The above article says the ‘ costs ‘ of the WCA cab dispatch system will be paid for by the NYC taxi industry. How so? Also it says that cabbies will be reimbursed for the time spent from where they took the job, to arrival at the pick-up spot. How so? Specifically how is this money going to appear and go down the line to the dispatchers and to reimburse cabbies for time?
NYC cabbies, wake up! Wake up! Wake up! You realize that the sky boys took control of your pay system, Greenbaum & Sherman take your customers’ money first, and do what they want and then give it to you. But NYC cabbies, you still have your customer base (sort of) all NYC cab riders paying cash not paycard. It is a Monster Customer Base worth not just millions but worth billions. Soon as the NYC cabbies nibble at the computer dispatch WAC customer base, the die is CAST. And from your comments, already NYC cabbie shills have signed up. Here’s what one sky app dispatcher announces. Download his software, and prospective riders will download too (Boston and NYC just two target cities mention. Boston regulator police already approved it. Here’s what happens, in 7 months use in London participating cabbies got 60 calls each. Not a great return for selling your customer base which has its credit cards registered with sky boy. Next, the rider is charged a small service fee by sky boy, now inflating the fare and taking what he wants from the fare. A cabbie may use an existing pay card system or use theirs for 5%. Also sky boy will keep track of all your jobs for you and how much money you make too! Thanks, Sky Boy.
Once you have all sold your customer base, you are no longer necessary. Sky Boy will be in CHARGE of all, and will keep TLC and regulators in a happy mood — somehow!!!
Now, your pal Dr. Rogoff, the taxi expert from Bernard Baruch college has participated in some taxi forums discussing pay cards, GPS and the like, and has given some media interviews and his forecasts for the future of the taxi business. First off, Dr. Rogoff, I am told, is busy transferring Brookline, MA, about 270 permit cabs who do not have much work in Brookline. Not necessarily with respect to Brookline, MA, Dr. Rogoff, I believe, has said the taxi of the future will come to the requesting rider, and the – closest one – will come. Does it make sense, said Rogoff and colleagues, for Brookline cabs to drop off in Boston, and then go empty to Brookline, when right near them a rider wants to go to Brookline, and so forth for all the relevant nearby city and town cab companies. So, for now, this Sky Boy claims he is selling his Sky Dispatch to Brookline cabbies, Boston cabbies, Cambridge dabbies, Somerville cabbies, who will only get calls in their own city/town – and the Sky Boy customer base which used to be thairs, when they tap Sky Boy app will be identified by pay card and GPS location and will only be given to the closest Brookline cab if it is in Brookline. This is for now!!
Next step, after the customer base has been stolen and possessed by Sky Boy, Sky Boy will say, this is crazy, each cab returns to its city empty, and each Boston cab returns to Boston empty, better for everyone if it is just GROUP dispatch — capish? No longer any hail rights although thousands have been paid and are owed on medallions, and you will only get work if Sky Boy wants to give it to you. Next Sky Boy will say, look these long jobs (because Sky Boy has all the ride and GPS statistics) pay you less than skipping from one cab job to another, so why don’t we enlist livery cars to do these long jobs – or maybe he will do it all by himself.
Next thing, Sky Boy will be raising his fees to both the cabs and the riders, and saying that maybe fares should be lower to get more business. Sky Boy will say anything and do anything to take power, control, and as much money as he can out of an extisting cab business in every city, that does not need Sky Boy.
NYC and Boston cabbies, better heed!!! As it is there are World taxis now black lincolns with checks, but they can’t get anywhere fast thru the traffic, and likely they cannot build their own customer base, because street hails are street hails FOR
Yeah, sorry to be so long winded, but street hails are street hails for a reason, and these Sky Boys cannot compete in the street hail business, that is why the Sky Boys want to wipe out street hails. Sky Boy brags for now cabbies will only pay if they get a job, no fees if they don’t get a job. Then Sky Boy lets his fangs show a little more, only those drivers who are in excellent standing with the regulators can join – now someone else to evaluate you, with the bottom line of evaluation – making more money for Sky Boy computer dispatch. Now someone else to inspect your vehicles, enforce more and more regulations, with the idea behind their mind – make more money.
Cabbies everywhere ought to say SCRAM, get out, good bye. Cabbies should get their very own credit card systems on their own phone, and keep their customer bases to themselves, nevermind giving them for nothing to Sky Boy Controllers. Love to hear everyone’s thoughts on these? Don’t think NYC city council going to approve double selling of NYC medallions, meaning approving 18,000 new pay card machines & taxis with the same meters as Manhattan in the outer boros..
Traffic and street hails are the weapons to fight against Sky Boy muscling in on the business and grabbing the customer base however giant it is, and to keep your business. These Sky Boys cannot provide the service unless there are no street hails cabs left.
Let’s hear everyone’s thoughts! Except Sky Boy’s thoughts!
Wheel Chair Man, drivers dont refuse calls because we dont get calls. We are not even allowed to get fares by calls. We pick up street hails.