Taxi fare increase debated at hearing
By Jonelle Marte, Globe Correspondent
Saying they have been painfully squeezed by increases in tolls and gas prices, a stream of taxi drivers testified today at a hearing in Boston that they need an increase in fares.
The rate hearing at Roxbury Community College, chaired by a police department hearing officer, focused on a proposal to increase per-mile fares by 50 percent and hike the starting fare by 50 cents.
The proposed increase would make a cab ride in Boston one of the most expensive in the nation. It must be approved by the police department, which regulates taxi fares.
Taxi driver Pierre Duchemin, who said he has been driving a taxi on and off for more than 25 years, supported the increase.
He said he has four kids and added, "I am not even making enough to provide for them."
He said drivers have watched with dismay as gas and toll -- and food -- prices have gone up. "Everything went up with us but the meter," he said at the hearing, which drew a crowd of about 200 people.
George Bachrach, president of the Environmental League of Massachusetts, said his group agreed with the drivers, but also wanted them to transition to more energy-efficient vehicles.
Captain Robert Ciccolo, the hearing officer who listened to testimony today, told the crowd he'd be willing to listen to more tomorrow. After the hearing ends, written testimony can be submitted for two weeks. After that, Ciccolo will submit a recommendation to the police commissioner.
The drivers, newly organized by the United Steelworkers union, have asked Boston for the first increase in their per-mile fare in six years, the Globe reported earlier this month.
But some customers said the increase was too much and others are worried that it could discourage tourism.
The fare hike would increase the per-mile rate by 50 percent and up the starting fare from $2.25 to $2.75. The proposed increase would push the cost per mile to $3.60, higher than in New York, Miami, San Francisco, and Chicago.
(George Rizer/Globe Staff)
Duchemin talked to fellow taxi drivers before the hearing this morning.
