Mayor Michael Bloomberg says the head of New York City’s Taxi and Limousine Commission has decided to leave the job for the private sector.
Matthew Daus has served two terms, since September 2001.
Bloomberg made the announcement Friday during his weekly radio show. He said Daus will remain in the job until his replacement is found.
In addition to working in the private sector, Daus also will become a distinguished lecturer at the City University of New York’s Transportation Research Center.
During his tenure, Daus introduced GPS, credit card processing and new fuel efficiency rules to the city’s more than 13,000 cabs.
Daus said it was a privilege to lead the TLC “during some of its most challenging and formative years.”
{ 24 comments… read them below or add one }
Johnny Cab 02.12.10 at 10:06 pm
I smell corruption and/or scandal.
Fed Up 02.13.10 at 7:11 am
It’s possible that he just plainly over stayed his welcome. I don’t recall any former TLC Chairman who held this post nearly as long.
It doesn’t really matter who is in this office. Our Mayor will appoint who ever is the best follower of his orders.
Unfortunately he will not pick someone who has some taxi driving experience. I challenge him to do so
There are 43,000+ licensed taxi drivers and probably several hundred thousand NYers who are in other positions that at one time or another drove a taxi. So, why is it so hard to find one that is qualified for this position that has at least a few months experience from behind the wheel of a NYC Taxi?
winky 02.13.10 at 11:09 am
Maybe the next Hitler running this agency will actually take TAXI drivers needs into consideration instead of the black cars, illegal vans and everyone else out there that steal TAXI drivers’ fares.
Daus was nothing more than a stooge for the mayor and in the pockets of livery car owners and operators.
Get lost, you did absolutely nothing for our industry.
Anonymous 02.13.10 at 6:55 pm
I AM A TAXI DRIVER , I AM READY TO QUITE AND FILL UP THE POST.HELLO DRIVERS VOTE ME !
CreditCardCabbie 02.13.10 at 10:21 pm
“Anonymous” Taxi Driver, are you able to get rid of greedy garage dispatchers? You see, the current commissioner focused so much on “issues like cabbies on the phone”, because in his mind that is a very serious violation, with the heavy fines $$$, not like the garage’s rip offs! Before he leaves the office, we hope he does something about it, or he will leave this uprising issue to the new commissioner …
Charles T 02.13.10 at 10:42 pm
Will Chairman Daus’ replacement be a guitarist from the Who, who attended Berkeley School of Music and was a 22 year automotive technician who was expert in 4 bolts out, 2 bolts back? Will he confirm that any cabbie caught with electronic equipment like private GPS, blue tooth, you name it, in the taxi will get a big big fine? But, if the cabbie has a guitar or banjo in his cab with which to serenade the tourists, will that be okay? Or maybe the advertising credit card vendors will have to turn the volume up so high on selling Canned Progresso Vegetable Soup on bargain that the collective voice of all the cabs loud volume advertising commercials will percolate and reverbate right to the TLC Chairman’s office!!! He he he he
mr. cabby 02.13.10 at 10:58 pm
nothing will get better until we get rid of bloomberg. he runs the whole city and all the agencies. i bet he is trying to bring more corrupt commissioner in tlc. or maybe its another plan from MTA to get more money from cabbies by replacing him with another dummy. bloomberg dont care about new yorkers, he is playing in billions. he certainly dont care about the pain of cabbies, which they get every day by sitting on their ass for 12 hours.
nyc cabbie 02.14.10 at 1:47 am
unfortunately mr duas wont be remembered for the things mentioned he introduced but will be for the things he shud have done but failed to do and yes i totally agree none of them have any kind of experience and they are totally blind to the industry and what we been through day and nite.
Charles T 02.14.10 at 6:38 am
Bloomberg in cabbie’s meter. Mission accomplished. Daus & Schenkman, no longer needed, jumping off the hot griddle . With accomplishment of the ultimate goal of Bloomberg getting himself into the cabbie’s meter, the MTA 50 cent surcharge programmed in. Who is going to send the NYC cab $374,775 daily take to the MTA, will it go from the fleet garages, who will charge it as a shift cost paid by the cabbie off his meter take? Or will the cabbie have to stop by Bloomberg’s office himself to drop it off? At 13,150 taxis doing 57 trips a day (bragged about by the credit card advertising vendors trying to cash in on their leech job, 1 job every 12.5 minutes they say) that is 749,550 trips a day. Of course airport players will not do as many jobs, but just for the economic model it’s okay.
The 50 cent surcharge is being added to the fares of the riders of the NYC cabs, 50 cent each fare, so technically the NYC cab riders have been taxed by Bloomberg, and I bet they don’t even know it. Of course, what is a surcharge, supposedly not to cost the cabbie anything from his pay (what’s left of his pay after the advertising credit card leech scam) as it goes down the line, will be shown separately, but actually will be figured in as cabbie pay and the MTA surcharge which will increase as soon as Bloomberg figures out how. Somehow, the cabbie is going to pay it, because the TLC chaps will keep fare increases down because the 50 surcharge will be figured into what the “poor” rider will have to pay.
You see how it works, the fare increases over the next millenium will be less (by the 50 cent surcharge) so the total fare the “poor rider” pays is not too much. This is how the money will be taken out of the hands of the people “doing the work” by getting less fare increases than they ordinarily would have gotten. This is an ancient world model: the smart powerful guys take more and more away from the people “doing the work.”
Now those medallion owners who actually drive their own taxis, how will they get the MTA 50 cent surcharge to Bloomberg? If the medallion does 57 trips a day as bragged by the liar advertising credit card leeches, how is the medallion owner going to get the $28.50 a day to Bloomberg’s office?
I bet I can guess, now that Bloomberg is in the meters, next he wants into the cabbie bank accounts. Bloomberg will demand the medallion owners who drive their own taxis’ bank account links, and grab it himself every day. Did anyone ever expect anything different from Bloomberg who demanded that Giuliano end his mayorship after 2 terms, by politicking with a bunch at City Hall to limit mayoral terms to 2, and then running and winning. Soon as Bloomberg’s two terms were up, he politicked to be allowed to run a third term, narrowly won the election, and is now in his third term? Did cabbies expect anything else. Well, I suppose Bloomberg could come in their houses at night, and raid the refrigerator and look for any escaped coins in the pants pockets. He he he he. As I said, the dirty work has been done, and probably the two of them Daus and Schenkman want to jump out of the hot frying pan before the cabbies figure out what happened and start activism.
And as one commenter said, there will probably be more leaving, and more coming on the commission. I suppose their educational requirements will be taxi fleet garage basement hangers-on, 4 bolts out 2 bolts back, basket weaver, and tool box replenishment experience. As I said, mission accomplished, now they are going to run out unscathed if they can before the aftermath.
Charles T 02.14.10 at 6:42 am
to continue: I suppose their educational requirements will be taxi fleet garage basement hangers-on, 4 bolts out 2 bolts back, basket weaver, and tool box replenishment experience. As I said, mission accomplished, now they are going to run out unscathed if they can before the aftermath.
mellow 02.14.10 at 9:35 pm
so let me get this straight…they are not collecting MTA taxes yet??? I used to drive this guys cab, he used to tell me add all the MTA taxes and give to him each week…was he just pocketing $60-$70 extra each week????
Fed Up 02.15.10 at 6:16 am
The MTA tax is being paid…I paid mine. It’s all worked out.
http://www.tax.state.ny.us/pdf/2009/misc/mt75i_1209.pdf
http://www.tax.state.ny.us/pdf/2009/misc/mt75mn_1209.pdf
winky 02.15.10 at 12:33 pm
It’s my understanding that the garage has to pay the tax on a quarterly basis. They have to supply the city with a report for each medallion which shows the number of trips.
I have no doubt they manipulate their systems to show less trips and pocket the difference.
After driving for three years and just left left the business, i can tell you that the only way you will make money and real money at that is to get your own taxi and lease/buy the medallion. There are too many hands in the pot and no one gives a shit about the driver.
This is a shit business with even shittier people running and working in it.
GET OUT NOW!!!!!
Old Yeller 02.16.10 at 1:39 am
To his credit, Matthew Daus did establish a cap on what garages can charge drivers for a shift. He also did drive a cab for awhile just to see what it’s like (although without needing the income to cover the basics of living it’s not the same experience).
However, he also did this:
1. He let taxi drivers go EIGHT YEARS without a rate increase, from ’96 – ’04.
2. He helped sabotage the proposed rate increase of ’02, making this ABSURD STATEMENT which was broadcast on the radio: “We have found that we currently have enough taxi drivers, so the rate increase is no longer being considered”. It turned out that the TRUTH was that Mayor Bloomberg, newly in office, wanted to raise money by issuing 900 new medallions and realized the value of the medallion would skyrocket if the rate increase was put into effect simultaneously with the issuance of the first 300 medallions, in ’04. So he “persuaded” the spineless Commissioner Daus (who should have resigned THEN) to delay the already-in-progress rate increase. The value of the medallion did indeed skyrocket when the rates went up, at the expense of the driver. This two-year delay of a desperately needed rate hike cost each cab driver approximately $15,000 in money he would have, and should have, made from ’02 to ’04. But Matthew Daus SAW NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT, and, funny, he didn’t have anything to say about whether or not there were now “enough cab drivers” when the rate increase finally was approved by the TLC in ’04. Did someone say, “hypocrite”?
3. For 10 years he presided over an industry in which taxi drivers:
a) work 12 hour shifts
b) have no health insurance
c) have no program in which to get checked for job-related conditions such as heart disease, lung disease, diabetes, eye strain, and circulatory problems (such as blood clots in the legs)
d) have no overtime
e) have no sick days
f) have no pension
g) have no profit-sharing or bonuses from the fleet owners.
This is how it was when Mr. Daus came into office and it’s how it will be when he leaves. Apparently these GROSS DEPARTURES from the standards that are in place in any governmental job or unionized labor employment are all okay with him as he did nothing to initiate any change in the system. THAT would have been real and admirable leadership.
4. He leaves us with three dubious mechanical contrivances:
a) the GPS tracking (but no navigating) which, as we now finally see, is actually only there to enable the collection of the TAXI TAX, whether it be mandated by the state or the city. (Remember what the public was told when the GPS tracking went in? “It will help us locate items that are left in cabs.” Oh, did we forget to mention, it will also cost you $180 per year if you take a cab once a day on the average?) Money that to some exent will come out of the tips of the driver.
b) the televison monitor which is DESPISED BY EVERYONE, including passengers. Oh, but that’s okay, it provides advertising revenue to garage owners who never have to listen to it. Can you imagine if the city proposed putting a television monitor, with the volume controlled by the passengers, six inches behind the head of a bus driver? It wouldn’t make it past the first committee meeting. Or how about in an airplane, right behind the head of the pilot? Matthew Daus either didn’t understand or care that adding a DISTRACTING AND IRRITATING element into the 12-hour shift of a driver is degrading to the profession and dangerous for passengers.
c) the L-shaped partition in the Ford Escapes. Another degradation for the taxi driver who must sit in a plexiglas cage for 12 hours LIKE AN ANIMAL. But that’s okay, it provides a little extra leg room for the passengers. If prisoners of war were subjected to this treatment, it would be a violation of the Geneva Convention! But Commissioner Daus never signed on to the Geneva Convention, so there it is.
Wouldn’t it be great if the new commissioner actually turns out to be someone who is looking out for the welfare of the backbone of the taxi industry… the DRIVER?
Fed Up 02.16.10 at 1:40 am
The city is not involved in the tax collecting. The information is all archived by the GPS providers. The owners have to file this information and pay the tax quarterly. GPS printouts showing the number of trips have to be submitted with the tax to confirm the correct trip numbers.. It’s for sure that any one not paying the tax will hear from the state.
Jose 02.16.10 at 8:02 pm
Commissioner Daus just said in NY1 that telephone talking by a driver is a distraction and He is going to save lives with the new regulations….what about the goddamit tv we have to listen all the time 12 houtrs a day? is not that a distraction? He says that tips are better and We are doing great!!! What a mother f—–!!!!!!How They are showing to the world that They control the media, The guy who did the interview knows of the world of taxi lime me praying the Coran, another idiot. I can’t wait the moment He is out from there!!!!! Jose
Word of Mouse 02.17.10 at 10:27 pm
Judging by the recent interviews on NY1 with the Taxi and Limo Commissioner, they guy knows how to run an operation and from all of what they have accomplished the last 7yrs. a great example of government getting it right.
Old Yeller 02.17.10 at 11:53 pm
Word of Mouse, obviously you have never been a cab driver.
Chip Stern 02.18.10 at 4:20 pm
OLD YELLER…
Excellent post.
Is it just me, or is there a direct correlation between the execrable TAXI TV and the Adoph Eichman/Israeli War Crimes Tribunal PLEXIGLASS CAGES (in the fabulkous Ford Escapes) and the ever-increasing use of cellular phones while driving?
Should the Mayor and the TLC Commissioner be suprised that policies shoved down the drivers’ and public’s throats could result in such a widespread plague of anti-social/un-professional behavior?
The effect of TAXI TV and PLEXIGLASS CAGES is to isolate the driver from the passenger, and completely sunder any and all opportunities to engage and interact with your passengers–WHICH IS THE HALLMARK AND DEFINING GRACE OF YOUR CLASSIC NYC TAXI DRIVER.
In the end, the driver is utterly dehumanized and made to feel like an animal. AND IF YOU TREAT PEOPLE LIKE ANIMALS LONG ENOUGH, THEIR BEHAVIOR ULTIMATELY RESEMBLES NOTHING SO MUCH AS THAT OF AN ANIMAL…and the passenger is not someone to offer a professional service to, but is a minor irritation to be tolerated–and barely at that.
So drivers talk on the phone, completing a circle jerk of indifference that neither serves the best interests of passengers nor the driver. I don’t talk on my cell phone, but then I’m funny that way.
As OLD YELLER pointed out, if the blaring, noxious spew emenating from TAXI TV is not both an irritating and dangerous distraction, then I don’t know what is. It makes the experience of driving a cab for 12 hours even more stressful, if such a thing is possible.
And those cages make a driver feel even more isolated and alienated from the very people he is contracted to serve, the riding public.
Therefore THEY CHAT AWAY ON THEIR CELLULAR PHONES.
Congratulations Mister Mayor and Mister Commissioner on your enlightened and visionary policies.
Chip Stern 02.18.10 at 4:24 pm
Dear WORD OF MOUSE:
Clearly you are a savant of the highest order.
Please contact NEW YORK ONE or this web site for great deals on a bridge spanning the East River into Brooklyn.
We won’t cum in your mouth, and we WILL respect you in the morning.
[Cough] Now sit up like a good little rodent. Here’s your cheese.
Charles T 02.18.10 at 5:22 pm
Nothing stopping Mayor Bloomberg or Matthew Daus from writing a comment or two patting themselves on their skinny little backs, is there?
Charles T 02.18.10 at 5:29 pm
San Francisco Verifone Flap – Anyone heard about all these installed VeriFone advertising credit card systems not being approved by the State of California and they have been given a temporary approval which is up in a few weeks, and likely will not be approved because of the input from the screens into the meter, and other factors. I just learned a little about it, and will report more as I learn it. Apparently there is a National Conference on Weights & Measures that gives non-binding meter standards, but the State of California Weights and Measures, itself, does bind their standards, so it turns out that the San Francisco installations of VeriFone and CMT are at this point only provisional for a few more weeks.
Anyone know anything about it? What does the State of New York Weights and Measures give as their meter standards?
Jose 02.18.10 at 7:05 pm
I am asking all taxi riders that as soon as You come into the cab , please, please!!!! turn down this TV. That is the real distracter for the driver and not thw phone. It is a real pain in the a– to hear all day long. Let’s rethink and with the new commissioner to be named let’s see if some common sense come back to the TLC and if They want to keep the tv with information, ok but keep it mude!!!! Riders can or could get any information They want or need but mude. We do not need to hear all these shit commercials, either riders so all waht I ask is please, please, riders, turn down this TV as soon as You come into the cab. Do it for consideration for us, the drivers….Thanks. Jose Bataller #422928
Zen 03.22.10 at 8:10 pm
Meter Runs Out on Taxi Chief; Tips Not Included!
http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/03/22/the-meter-runs-out-on-a-taxi-commissioner-tips-not-included/