Commentary on Taxi Rules

Random image: Black-eyed Susan Vine

The crackdown on out-of town taxis drew praise last month from a city group of owners and drivers, but on Tuesday a North Plainfield group protested the move as unfair.

To Plainfielders with cars, the topic may be of little interest, but as one who decided in 2008 not to get a new car, I feel some solidarity with the many people who rely on taxis to get to stores, medical offices or other locations not served by buses or trains.

The issue now is an increase in fines to as much as $2,000 per incident for taxis not licensed in Plainfield to pick up fares. I live near Twin City supermarket and it was not uncommon to see a North Plainfield taxi pull up to take someone home with a load of groceries. The owner of those big yellow vans told the council Tuesday he couldn't get a license in Plainfield if he wanted to, because Plainfield has more than the number of taxis allowable under a state law permitting just one per 1,000 residents.

Since 2008, I have been able to do most of my traveling on public transportation, but the taxi debate hit home for me regarding medical and dental appointments. There was a time when I could walk down Park Avenue to go to the doctor or dentist, but gradually they all moved out. They are still on Park Avenue, just in South Plainfield, North Edison or Edison. It can cost me $8, $10 or $15 one-way to reach a practitioner. My endocrinologist, formerly at Muhlenberg, is now at Overlook Medical Center in Summit, a trip that is in a whole other category of expense.

So say I go to the dentist in North Edison and need to get home after some expensive crown work. I call the same Plainfield taxi company that dropped me off and they come and get me. I would not know how to get a local taxi or even if there is such a company in North Edison. The same goes for South Plainfield.

I do think there is a different situation when it comes to Plainfield and North Plainfield. I'm guessing there are many more people in both the city and the borough without cars than in surrounding towns. There is a lot of back-and-forth to Twin City, the train station and the Plainfield Health Center, among other draws.

Of course, there is a rationale for the taxi rules.

Corporation Counsel Vernita Sias-Hill explained Tuesday that the state delegates police powers to municipalities, which have the responsibility to regulate the taxi cab industry. She said the city-issued licenses are actually franchises and the city does not allow unlicensed taxis to pick up fares here.

"You can be dropped off, but not picked up," she said. "I encourage compliance with this."

While that is the law, I believe most people think in terms of a round trip. If Soria Taxi brought them to Twin City, they are likely to call Soria to take them home (unless they take the store's van) But now they may be ordered out of the taxi by a Plainfield police officer, so they better have the phone number of a city taxi company and a couple extra dollars for the fare across the Plainfield border.

This is a legal situation, but also a human situation. It warrants further discussion.

And by the way, if we are going to go by the letter of the law, it might be interesting to look into how well our city taxi operators obey Plainfield's rules for fares and extra passengers. In 2008 I wrote about my experience with fares.  There is also this rule:  Unless the person first employing the taxicab shall consent, no additional passengers shall be picked up or permitted to ride in a taxicab on the same trip. I have never been asked whether I minded having a few other people jammed in or trundled around to other locations on the way (or out of the way) to my destination.

It could be educational for an elected official or even a candidate to experience a taxi trip occasionally and see how the other (carless) half lives, especially now that developers insist that people in transit villages don't need parking spaces, because many won't have cars.

--Bernice