Thursday, May 27, 2010
Monday, April 12, 2010
Man gets 45 days in jail for drunk attack on cabbie
From the Kingston Whig-Standard online:
COURT: Lawyer says his client has changed his ways
A Kingston man who teed off on an Amherst Taxi driver under the influence of alcohol 14 months ago has been sentenced to 45 days in jail.
Kenneth Fellows will be subject to 12 months of probation after that, notwithstanding his lawyer's claims that he's a changed man.
Fellows, 44, pleaded guilty in Kingston's Ontario Court of Justice to assaulting the cabby on Feb. 7, 2009.
Crown attorney Bruce Griffith told Justice Rommel Masse that Fellows caught the cab at 4 a.m. that day on Leroy Grant Drive and that he and the driver talked amicably during the trip to his destination on Rosemund Crescent.
When they arrived, Fellows handed the cab driver a $10 bill to pay his $7.50 fare and, according to the Crown, that's when the trouble began.
Griffith said the driver, with Fellows' bill in hand, was reaching for his change purse when Fellows suddenly became enraged and demanded to know if the driver was trying to take advantage of him because he was drunk.
"I ought to punch you out," Fellows snarled at the cabby, according to Griffith, before slugging the driver in the side of the face with his fist.
Griffith said Fellows rant at the driver and then, just as suddenly, snatched his keys from the ignition and threw them out the open driver's side window into a snow bank.
The cab driver got out to retrieve his keys and Masse was told Fellows got out, as well, and renewed his attack until two women emerged from one of the nearby houses and pulled him off.
Fellows followed them into the house, Griffin said, and the cab driver, who had already contacted his dispatcher about his problem fare, returned to his vehicle to wait for police.
He still hadn't found his keys by the time officers arrived. Griffith said Fellows insisted to the officers that the taxi driver had picked a fight with him and that he'd merely defended himself.
Fellows' defence lawyer, Stephen Zap, told the judge his client sees things differently now and is "not the same individual who was involved in this fight."
Since then, he explained, Fellows underwent "a life-altering event," in the form of a heart attack. Zap said it convinced him to assess his lifestyle and stop drinking.
He urged Masse to place his client on probation and to forego jail, noting that the taxi driver appears to have suffered little injury and seems to bear his client no ill will. Zap said the man specifically told the probation officer who wrote his client's presentence report that he has no fear of Fellows.
Griffith, however, urged the judge to impose a 30-to 60-day jail sentence because, regardless of the outcome of this particular attack, people working the late night shift like taxi drivers and convenience store clerks are uniquely vulnerable to violence.
"This was four o'clock in the morning, with a taxi driver who was wearing a seat belt," the prosecutor said. "He couldn't defend himself."
In the end Masse agreed. "The court has to send a strong message to the public, to the community, that we can't tolerate this kind of behaviour."
He told Zap the cabby's absence of fear speaks more to his character than the circumstances of the crime or to Fellows' capacity to provoke a fearful reaction. He also noted that Fellows already had the benefit of 18 months of probation following an assault conviction in 2005.
To assist him in pursuing his new lifestyle, however, Masse ordered that after Fellows must abstain completely from alcohol while on probation. He's also required to co-operate with any assessment, treatment or counselling directed by his probation supervisor, including but not limited to treatment or counselling for alcohol abuse. He's forbidden by court order from possessing certain weapons, such as firearms, for five years and he is also barred from using the services of Amherst Taxi while subject to probation.
suey@thewhig.com
Copyright © 2010 The Whig Standard
COURT: Lawyer says his client has changed his ways
A Kingston man who teed off on an Amherst Taxi driver under the influence of alcohol 14 months ago has been sentenced to 45 days in jail.
Kenneth Fellows will be subject to 12 months of probation after that, notwithstanding his lawyer's claims that he's a changed man.
Fellows, 44, pleaded guilty in Kingston's Ontario Court of Justice to assaulting the cabby on Feb. 7, 2009.
Crown attorney Bruce Griffith told Justice Rommel Masse that Fellows caught the cab at 4 a.m. that day on Leroy Grant Drive and that he and the driver talked amicably during the trip to his destination on Rosemund Crescent.
When they arrived, Fellows handed the cab driver a $10 bill to pay his $7.50 fare and, according to the Crown, that's when the trouble began.
Griffith said the driver, with Fellows' bill in hand, was reaching for his change purse when Fellows suddenly became enraged and demanded to know if the driver was trying to take advantage of him because he was drunk.
"I ought to punch you out," Fellows snarled at the cabby, according to Griffith, before slugging the driver in the side of the face with his fist.
Griffith said Fellows rant at the driver and then, just as suddenly, snatched his keys from the ignition and threw them out the open driver's side window into a snow bank.
The cab driver got out to retrieve his keys and Masse was told Fellows got out, as well, and renewed his attack until two women emerged from one of the nearby houses and pulled him off.
Fellows followed them into the house, Griffin said, and the cab driver, who had already contacted his dispatcher about his problem fare, returned to his vehicle to wait for police.
He still hadn't found his keys by the time officers arrived. Griffith said Fellows insisted to the officers that the taxi driver had picked a fight with him and that he'd merely defended himself.
Fellows' defence lawyer, Stephen Zap, told the judge his client sees things differently now and is "not the same individual who was involved in this fight."
Since then, he explained, Fellows underwent "a life-altering event," in the form of a heart attack. Zap said it convinced him to assess his lifestyle and stop drinking.
He urged Masse to place his client on probation and to forego jail, noting that the taxi driver appears to have suffered little injury and seems to bear his client no ill will. Zap said the man specifically told the probation officer who wrote his client's presentence report that he has no fear of Fellows.
Griffith, however, urged the judge to impose a 30-to 60-day jail sentence because, regardless of the outcome of this particular attack, people working the late night shift like taxi drivers and convenience store clerks are uniquely vulnerable to violence.
"This was four o'clock in the morning, with a taxi driver who was wearing a seat belt," the prosecutor said. "He couldn't defend himself."
In the end Masse agreed. "The court has to send a strong message to the public, to the community, that we can't tolerate this kind of behaviour."
He told Zap the cabby's absence of fear speaks more to his character than the circumstances of the crime or to Fellows' capacity to provoke a fearful reaction. He also noted that Fellows already had the benefit of 18 months of probation following an assault conviction in 2005.
To assist him in pursuing his new lifestyle, however, Masse ordered that after Fellows must abstain completely from alcohol while on probation. He's also required to co-operate with any assessment, treatment or counselling directed by his probation supervisor, including but not limited to treatment or counselling for alcohol abuse. He's forbidden by court order from possessing certain weapons, such as firearms, for five years and he is also barred from using the services of Amherst Taxi while subject to probation.
suey@thewhig.com
Copyright © 2010 The Whig Standard
Saturday, April 03, 2010
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Murder trial dates set
From the Kingston Whig-Standard Online:
By Sue Yanagisawa
Trial dates have been set for a man charged with second-degree murder in the June 16, 2007, stabbing death of 50-year-old Amey's cab driver David Wayne Krick.
Richard Edmund Smith, 33, is scheduled to stand trial in late September in Kingston's Superior Court. Four weeks have been reserved for the presentation of evidence.
Krick was stabbed to death early in the morning on Father's Day three years ago, shortly after picking up a fare in the general vicinity of Sir John A. Macdonald Boulevard and Princess Street.
He managed to send out a distress call before collapsing and was found by fellow drivers before 7 a.m., unconscious and dying on the sidewalk on Durham Street.
His cab -- No. 71, a top sign number that has since been retired from the Amey's fleet -- had been stolen, it's believed by his assailant.
The taxi was tracked by GPS as it was driven back to the Van Order Drive area that morning and it was found not long after it stopped moving. It had been abandoned in the parking lot of Queen's University's An Clachan apartment complex on MacPherson Avenue.
Police later disclosed that a man had been seen running in the area, but he eluded pursuit and disappeared into the surrounding neighbourhood.
Smith wasn't arrested and charged with the murder until four months later, in October. He's been in custody since his arrest.
suey@thewhig.com
Copyright © 2010 The Whig Standard
By Sue Yanagisawa
Trial dates have been set for a man charged with second-degree murder in the June 16, 2007, stabbing death of 50-year-old Amey's cab driver David Wayne Krick.
Richard Edmund Smith, 33, is scheduled to stand trial in late September in Kingston's Superior Court. Four weeks have been reserved for the presentation of evidence.
Krick was stabbed to death early in the morning on Father's Day three years ago, shortly after picking up a fare in the general vicinity of Sir John A. Macdonald Boulevard and Princess Street.
He managed to send out a distress call before collapsing and was found by fellow drivers before 7 a.m., unconscious and dying on the sidewalk on Durham Street.
His cab -- No. 71, a top sign number that has since been retired from the Amey's fleet -- had been stolen, it's believed by his assailant.
The taxi was tracked by GPS as it was driven back to the Van Order Drive area that morning and it was found not long after it stopped moving. It had been abandoned in the parking lot of Queen's University's An Clachan apartment complex on MacPherson Avenue.
Police later disclosed that a man had been seen running in the area, but he eluded pursuit and disappeared into the surrounding neighbourhood.
Smith wasn't arrested and charged with the murder until four months later, in October. He's been in custody since his arrest.
suey@thewhig.com
Copyright © 2010 The Whig Standard
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Cab rides may cost more by the summer
From the Kingston Whig-Standard Online:
Taxi fares in Kingston could rise this year at the same time the new harmonized sales tax comes into effect.
On July 1, a new sales tax of 13% will be levied on a wide array of products and services in Ontario. The tax, which is bitterly opposed by many consumers and business groups, merges the federal GST and provincial PST and while goods and services already taxed won't be affected, the harmonized tax covers a vast range of services currently not taxed.
One of the areas the double-digit tax would be applied is taxi fares, and as the Kingston Area Taxi Commission will have to recalibrate all the meters in the city's taxis to reflect the new tariff, long-time cab driver Roy Ambury is suggesting the city's taxi commission takes the opportunity to increase fares at the same time.
Driving cab is a financially precarious business, he said in an interview this weekend, and the city's cabbies haven't seen a rise in rates in 2008.
"The economy in general is not performing the way it should be, and taxi drivers need some help," he said.
"This new tax is coming in and there's a lot of concern about that, and we're suggesting that the taxi commission take a look at the rates at the same time they have to adjust the (fares) for the HST."
Taxi rates currently stand at a $2.85 drop rate, which is the charge to get into a cab, then 10 cents for each 77 metres, with added tariffs for waiting time, baggage and extra passengers.
There are some 600 drivers working for three companies in the city, and Ambury said at times it is difficult for drivers just to break even.
"We think there has to be a price point that is both good for the consumers and good for the drivers," he said.
"If the driver is a good businessman, he will make it, if he is not a good businessman he won't, but in a lot of cases right now with the price of fuel and everything else, it's a matter of breaking even versus not breaking even."
The taxi commission will consider the request to in-crease rates, as well as continue its discussion the mounting of cameras in city cabs for the protection of drivers, at its regular meeting tomorrow afternoon.
Ken Matthews, chair of the commission, said he doubts the majority of drivers will support a fare increase.
"Every time fares go up ridership goes down, at least for a while," he said. "It comes back gradually."
Fare increases are reviewed every year.
"I don't think there's any chance (of a fare increase), but it's up to the committee (to review it)," Matthews said.
"If there's a lot of support for an increase, there will be a review."
Copyright © 2010 The Whig Standard
Taxi fares in Kingston could rise this year at the same time the new harmonized sales tax comes into effect.
On July 1, a new sales tax of 13% will be levied on a wide array of products and services in Ontario. The tax, which is bitterly opposed by many consumers and business groups, merges the federal GST and provincial PST and while goods and services already taxed won't be affected, the harmonized tax covers a vast range of services currently not taxed.
One of the areas the double-digit tax would be applied is taxi fares, and as the Kingston Area Taxi Commission will have to recalibrate all the meters in the city's taxis to reflect the new tariff, long-time cab driver Roy Ambury is suggesting the city's taxi commission takes the opportunity to increase fares at the same time.
Driving cab is a financially precarious business, he said in an interview this weekend, and the city's cabbies haven't seen a rise in rates in 2008.
"The economy in general is not performing the way it should be, and taxi drivers need some help," he said.
"This new tax is coming in and there's a lot of concern about that, and we're suggesting that the taxi commission take a look at the rates at the same time they have to adjust the (fares) for the HST."
Taxi rates currently stand at a $2.85 drop rate, which is the charge to get into a cab, then 10 cents for each 77 metres, with added tariffs for waiting time, baggage and extra passengers.
There are some 600 drivers working for three companies in the city, and Ambury said at times it is difficult for drivers just to break even.
"We think there has to be a price point that is both good for the consumers and good for the drivers," he said.
"If the driver is a good businessman, he will make it, if he is not a good businessman he won't, but in a lot of cases right now with the price of fuel and everything else, it's a matter of breaking even versus not breaking even."
The taxi commission will consider the request to in-crease rates, as well as continue its discussion the mounting of cameras in city cabs for the protection of drivers, at its regular meeting tomorrow afternoon.
Ken Matthews, chair of the commission, said he doubts the majority of drivers will support a fare increase.
"Every time fares go up ridership goes down, at least for a while," he said. "It comes back gradually."
Fare increases are reviewed every year.
"I don't think there's any chance (of a fare increase), but it's up to the committee (to review it)," Matthews said.
"If there's a lot of support for an increase, there will be a review."
Copyright © 2010 The Whig Standard
Wednesday, March 03, 2010
Monday, February 01, 2010
Friday, January 22, 2010
Man gets 90 days in jail
From the Kingston Whig-Standard Online:
A 24-year-old man who behaved outrageously toward a Kingston taxi driver after a night in Kingston's entertainment district more than a year ago has been sentenced to 90 days in jail.
Kushwinder S. Brar spent 16 days in pretrial custody after he threatened to "poke" the cabby with a small knife on his key-chain when ordered out of the car.
He has also been given 12 months of probation and ordered to abstain from alcohol during that time. He's prohibited from frequenting bars, taverns and other places where alcohol is dispensed, except licensed dining rooms between noon and 2 p.m. or 6 and 8 p.m., for the purpose of consuming meals.
Brar pleaded guilty in Kingston's Ontario Court of Justice in November to threatening an Amey's Taxi driver a year earlier and possession of a weapon -- his pocket knife -- for a purpose dangerous to the public peace. He also pleaded guilty to a subsequent violation last June of the alcohol abstention condition attached to his bail while the first two charges remained outstanding.
His sentencing was put over to this week to allow for the preparation of a pre-sentence report.
At the time of Brar's pleas, assistant Crown attorney Ross Drummond told the court that his victim, on the night of Nov. 16, 2008, had been working the 4 p.m. to 4 a.m. shift when he picked up Brar and a male companion at Princess and Division streets.
The two passengers initially asked to be taken to Bayridge Drive and Front Road, but Drummond told Justice Rommel Masse they began to debate en route about a possible change in destination to Denny's restaurant.
The taxi driver kept driving while they were trying to work it out, which apparently enraged Brar, who, according to Drummond, grew increasingly belligerent with the cab driver.
Ultimately, he said, Brar's insults expanded to include the driver's mother, who he called a whore.
By then, Drummond said, the taxi was near Palace Road and the driver pulled over around Wright Crescent and ordered both men out of his cab.
Brar wasn't inclined to co-operate, however, and, according to the prosecutor, instead of getting out of the taxi, he pulled out a small pocket knife attached to his key chain and brandished it at the driver, asking: "You don't want to get poked, do you?"
Drummond said the cabby immediately raised his hands in a gesture of surrender but managed to also hit his panic button, which summoned fellow drivers.
Masse was told that Brar was arrested but subsequently released on bail.
Seven months later, on June 9, 2009, he was charged with violating the terms of his release.
According to Drummond, Kingston Police investigating a complaint about a possible impaired driver that night pulled over a small silver car traveling north on Princess Street. Brar was a passenger in the car and appeared to have been drinking, which a quick computer check revealed was a contravention of his bail conditions.
The prosecutor told Masse that Brar disclosed to police following that second arrest that he'd had five beer because he was scheduled to make a court appearance the following day to "figure out if I go to jail."
After hearing the facts of the matter, which Brar didn't dispute, Masse demanded to know why he'd treated the cab driver so shabbily.
Brar told him that the man had refused to pull his cab to the side of the road and wait while he and his friend settled on their destination, which led to an argument.
"So, you were willing to waste his time?" Masse snapped at him. "He's a busy man."
Brar's defence lawyer, John Ecclestone, requested a pre-sentence report, telling Masse that he expected it to support his contention that "this ugly incident is not who my client is, or, more importantly, who he's going to be."
By the time that assessment was completed and in the hands of the judge, however, Ecclestone had to admit the report was less positive than he'd hoped.
Masse observed that it was, in fact, "not favourable," and Crown attorney Bruce Griffith, who handled the sentencing, recommended 90 days of jail and probation for a year, based in part on its findings.
Still, Ecclestone told Masse that his client is basically, "a decent young man who's turned things around." He advised the judge, for example, that Brar assists his family by taking on tasks like the household cooking. His mother, according to the defence lawyer, has rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis, health problems that forced her to retire and severely limit the scope of her activities.
Ecclestone further suggested that "alcohol was a key factor in this negative behaviour" and he told the Masse that Brar's father intends to relocate with his wife and son on the West Coast.
Both of Brar's older sisters are psychiatrists, he disclosed, and the family's plan is to have their son enroll in university in Seattle, where one of his sisters lives.
Masse, in passing sentence, told Brar simply: "You have to go to jail," and made a point of stressing to him, "your behaviour toward this man was completely unjustified."
suey@thewhig.com
Copyright © 2010 The Whig Standard
A 24-year-old man who behaved outrageously toward a Kingston taxi driver after a night in Kingston's entertainment district more than a year ago has been sentenced to 90 days in jail.
Kushwinder S. Brar spent 16 days in pretrial custody after he threatened to "poke" the cabby with a small knife on his key-chain when ordered out of the car.
He has also been given 12 months of probation and ordered to abstain from alcohol during that time. He's prohibited from frequenting bars, taverns and other places where alcohol is dispensed, except licensed dining rooms between noon and 2 p.m. or 6 and 8 p.m., for the purpose of consuming meals.
Brar pleaded guilty in Kingston's Ontario Court of Justice in November to threatening an Amey's Taxi driver a year earlier and possession of a weapon -- his pocket knife -- for a purpose dangerous to the public peace. He also pleaded guilty to a subsequent violation last June of the alcohol abstention condition attached to his bail while the first two charges remained outstanding.
His sentencing was put over to this week to allow for the preparation of a pre-sentence report.
At the time of Brar's pleas, assistant Crown attorney Ross Drummond told the court that his victim, on the night of Nov. 16, 2008, had been working the 4 p.m. to 4 a.m. shift when he picked up Brar and a male companion at Princess and Division streets.
The two passengers initially asked to be taken to Bayridge Drive and Front Road, but Drummond told Justice Rommel Masse they began to debate en route about a possible change in destination to Denny's restaurant.
The taxi driver kept driving while they were trying to work it out, which apparently enraged Brar, who, according to Drummond, grew increasingly belligerent with the cab driver.
Ultimately, he said, Brar's insults expanded to include the driver's mother, who he called a whore.
By then, Drummond said, the taxi was near Palace Road and the driver pulled over around Wright Crescent and ordered both men out of his cab.
Brar wasn't inclined to co-operate, however, and, according to the prosecutor, instead of getting out of the taxi, he pulled out a small pocket knife attached to his key chain and brandished it at the driver, asking: "You don't want to get poked, do you?"
Drummond said the cabby immediately raised his hands in a gesture of surrender but managed to also hit his panic button, which summoned fellow drivers.
Masse was told that Brar was arrested but subsequently released on bail.
Seven months later, on June 9, 2009, he was charged with violating the terms of his release.
According to Drummond, Kingston Police investigating a complaint about a possible impaired driver that night pulled over a small silver car traveling north on Princess Street. Brar was a passenger in the car and appeared to have been drinking, which a quick computer check revealed was a contravention of his bail conditions.
The prosecutor told Masse that Brar disclosed to police following that second arrest that he'd had five beer because he was scheduled to make a court appearance the following day to "figure out if I go to jail."
After hearing the facts of the matter, which Brar didn't dispute, Masse demanded to know why he'd treated the cab driver so shabbily.
Brar told him that the man had refused to pull his cab to the side of the road and wait while he and his friend settled on their destination, which led to an argument.
"So, you were willing to waste his time?" Masse snapped at him. "He's a busy man."
Brar's defence lawyer, John Ecclestone, requested a pre-sentence report, telling Masse that he expected it to support his contention that "this ugly incident is not who my client is, or, more importantly, who he's going to be."
By the time that assessment was completed and in the hands of the judge, however, Ecclestone had to admit the report was less positive than he'd hoped.
Masse observed that it was, in fact, "not favourable," and Crown attorney Bruce Griffith, who handled the sentencing, recommended 90 days of jail and probation for a year, based in part on its findings.
Still, Ecclestone told Masse that his client is basically, "a decent young man who's turned things around." He advised the judge, for example, that Brar assists his family by taking on tasks like the household cooking. His mother, according to the defence lawyer, has rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis, health problems that forced her to retire and severely limit the scope of her activities.
Ecclestone further suggested that "alcohol was a key factor in this negative behaviour" and he told the Masse that Brar's father intends to relocate with his wife and son on the West Coast.
Both of Brar's older sisters are psychiatrists, he disclosed, and the family's plan is to have their son enroll in university in Seattle, where one of his sisters lives.
Masse, in passing sentence, told Brar simply: "You have to go to jail," and made a point of stressing to him, "your behaviour toward this man was completely unjustified."
suey@thewhig.com
Copyright © 2010 The Whig Standard
Monday, January 18, 2010
Cameras in cabs ineffective, expert says
From the Whig-Standard Online:
When Aaron Doyle arrived in Kingston last week for a conference on closed-circuit television (CCTV) surveillance in Kingston, he was immediately presented with a tough audience for his argument that taxi cameras don't protect drivers: a Kingston cabbie.
Doyle is a Carleton University criminologist who has been part of a team evaluating how such cameras are being used in Ottawa, their privacy implications and their effectiveness.
On his way downtown, he told the driver briefly about his research, and the next thing he knew the cabbie was taking him slowly down the street where driver David Krick was murdered last year and hotly arguing in favour of the tiny in-car cameras that some city cabs carry.
"We drove past where it happened, on a street not far from here, and the driver pointed out where it happened and he was asking me, 'How could you argue against these cameras?' " Doyle recalled.
"It was a very interesting conversation, to say the least."
But like other experts at the Camera Surveillance In Canada workshop, held by the university's Surveillance Studies Centre and partially underwritten by the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, he argued such cameras are a knee-jerk response to crime that people think should be effective, and which divert money and attention from more effective strategies.
In the case of cab cameras, Doyle noted that there has been no study out of any city that uses them showing that crime against cabbies falls when they are installed or that they act as a deterrent when passengers know they are being watched.
Taxi drivers -- whose working conditions involve working alone with their backs to often-intoxicated strangers and who regularly travel to isolated areas while carrying cash after dark -- face 20 times the amount of violence that an ordinary citizen does and are four times as likely to be murdered on the job as a police officer.
While it seems logical that no one in their right mind would attack a cab driver in front of a camera, Doyle noted the problem is that no one in their right mind would attack a taxi driver, period.
He noted the argument for cameras assumes potential criminals have thought things though first and are not desperate for cash, mentally ill or drunk or stoned -- all big ifs when it comes to the kind of people who think armed robbery of taxi drivers is a good idea.
"You would have to be a fool to assault a driver in front of a camera, but put bluntly, you'd have to be acting pretty foolishly to attack a driver in the first place."
The cameras are often aggressively marketed to cities and cab companies by the companies who sell them. Often they are marketed with little consultation with drivers, who face a four-figure bill for installing them and who fear they could be used by their supervisors to spy on them and discipline them for minor infractions, all issues in Ottawa.
And Doyle noted the public, on whom the cameras are trained, are not consulted at all, even though a legitimate fear is that videotaped drunken escapades in the back seat could wind up on the Internet in the manner of shows likeTaxi Cab Confessions.
Doyle's experience with the cabbie cam is not unusual as people generally believe that surveillance cameras are more effective than they are and record everything, even though in a typical multi-cam array, only a few seconds of data are saved each minute in order to conserve storage space.
Danielle Dawson, a master's candidate in sociology at Queen's University, presented the findings of a multi-national survey that found the majority of people believe the cameras are effective.
And although people don't know much about how they are actually used, most also believe they have a sophisticated understanding of such cameras' use and capabilities.
"People feel that they are experts in it because of what they have seen on the media," she said, pointing to CCTV crime footage aired on the news and shows likeCopsorBig Brother.
"[These shows] hype up the capability of CCTV and contribute to why people think CCTV is so effective."
Dawson also noted that while the overwhelming majority of people believe cameras deter crime even though there is no evidence to support that belief, people also don't want that supposed crime-fighting capability looking at where they live, according to the survey.
"Even the people who believe that CCTV is effective don't want it being used in their neighbourghoods," she said.
ielliot@thewhig.com
Copyright © 2010 The Whig Standard
When Aaron Doyle arrived in Kingston last week for a conference on closed-circuit television (CCTV) surveillance in Kingston, he was immediately presented with a tough audience for his argument that taxi cameras don't protect drivers: a Kingston cabbie.
Doyle is a Carleton University criminologist who has been part of a team evaluating how such cameras are being used in Ottawa, their privacy implications and their effectiveness.
On his way downtown, he told the driver briefly about his research, and the next thing he knew the cabbie was taking him slowly down the street where driver David Krick was murdered last year and hotly arguing in favour of the tiny in-car cameras that some city cabs carry.
"We drove past where it happened, on a street not far from here, and the driver pointed out where it happened and he was asking me, 'How could you argue against these cameras?' " Doyle recalled.
"It was a very interesting conversation, to say the least."
But like other experts at the Camera Surveillance In Canada workshop, held by the university's Surveillance Studies Centre and partially underwritten by the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, he argued such cameras are a knee-jerk response to crime that people think should be effective, and which divert money and attention from more effective strategies.
In the case of cab cameras, Doyle noted that there has been no study out of any city that uses them showing that crime against cabbies falls when they are installed or that they act as a deterrent when passengers know they are being watched.
Taxi drivers -- whose working conditions involve working alone with their backs to often-intoxicated strangers and who regularly travel to isolated areas while carrying cash after dark -- face 20 times the amount of violence that an ordinary citizen does and are four times as likely to be murdered on the job as a police officer.
While it seems logical that no one in their right mind would attack a cab driver in front of a camera, Doyle noted the problem is that no one in their right mind would attack a taxi driver, period.
He noted the argument for cameras assumes potential criminals have thought things though first and are not desperate for cash, mentally ill or drunk or stoned -- all big ifs when it comes to the kind of people who think armed robbery of taxi drivers is a good idea.
"You would have to be a fool to assault a driver in front of a camera, but put bluntly, you'd have to be acting pretty foolishly to attack a driver in the first place."
The cameras are often aggressively marketed to cities and cab companies by the companies who sell them. Often they are marketed with little consultation with drivers, who face a four-figure bill for installing them and who fear they could be used by their supervisors to spy on them and discipline them for minor infractions, all issues in Ottawa.
And Doyle noted the public, on whom the cameras are trained, are not consulted at all, even though a legitimate fear is that videotaped drunken escapades in the back seat could wind up on the Internet in the manner of shows likeTaxi Cab Confessions.
Doyle's experience with the cabbie cam is not unusual as people generally believe that surveillance cameras are more effective than they are and record everything, even though in a typical multi-cam array, only a few seconds of data are saved each minute in order to conserve storage space.
Danielle Dawson, a master's candidate in sociology at Queen's University, presented the findings of a multi-national survey that found the majority of people believe the cameras are effective.
And although people don't know much about how they are actually used, most also believe they have a sophisticated understanding of such cameras' use and capabilities.
"People feel that they are experts in it because of what they have seen on the media," she said, pointing to CCTV crime footage aired on the news and shows likeCopsorBig Brother.
"[These shows] hype up the capability of CCTV and contribute to why people think CCTV is so effective."
Dawson also noted that while the overwhelming majority of people believe cameras deter crime even though there is no evidence to support that belief, people also don't want that supposed crime-fighting capability looking at where they live, according to the survey.
"Even the people who believe that CCTV is effective don't want it being used in their neighbourghoods," she said.
ielliot@thewhig.com
Copyright © 2010 The Whig Standard
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Accessible Taxi Report
In early October, a draft of the Accessible Taxi Report was posted here. The report has been prepared by BMA Management Consultants. A final version of the report is now available. Click the link below to read the updated report.
Accessible Taxi Report - Kingston
Accessible Taxi Report - Kingston
Saturday, January 02, 2010
Wednesday, December 02, 2009
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Amey's to install cameras
From the Kingston Whig-Standard Online:
The operator of Kingston's biggest taxi company says he will install surveillance cameras to protect drivers.
Mark Greenwood, owner of Amey's Taxi, owns 15 cars that operate with Amey's signs on the roof. There are roughly 90 cars in Kingston that carry the Amey's sign, but the bulk of them are owned and operated by independent businesspeople.
Greenwood said other owners also are installing cameras.
"I would say they're in about 25% of our cars right now or are going to be," he said.
Last week, an Amey's driver was stabbed by a passenger in the front seat who jabbed him in the chest with an X-Acto knife and then stole the cab. The driver was not seriously hurt, Greenwood said.
That taxi did not yet have any safety equipment.
Last August, the body that regulates and governs the local cab industry ordered car owners to install one of three safety options in each car: an external flashing emergency light, a shield separating driver and rear seat passengers or a camera.
The safety measures were ordered after an outcry by taxi drivers in the wake of the murder in 2007 of Amey's driver David Krick.
The lights cost $300. Barriers cost $700 and cameras cost $1,400 per car. The safety equipment must be installed within three years, or when the car is replaced, whichever comes first.
"I'm going to do what I feel would protect them best," Greenwood said. "Obviously I care about my drivers and if I do everything in my power to make sure they're safe, then I can sleep easy at night."
Greenwood said most owners have chosen to install the lights, which can be operated from inside the car by the driver. They are only useful if someone outside the taxi sees the flashing light and calls 911.
Greenwood said he's sold on the cameras. He cites recent statistics from Windsor, where there were seven violent incidents in taxis in 2007 and 11 incidents last year.
In February this year, the installation of cameras was completed in Windsor cabs. There have not been any violent incidents since.
Violent incidents, including robberies and assaults on drivers, have declined in most cities where cameras were widely installed.
"They're proven to work," Greenwood said. "I know people say it's not a shield, it just takes pictures and it helps the police catch them after the fact, but really it prevents them from doing it in the first place."
Greenwood said shields are problematic because they don't protect drivers from front-seat passengers.
In the incident last week, the fare got into the front seat, beside the driver, and stabbed him by leaning over and pushing the driver up against the door.
A 23-year-old man was charged in the assault.
A 31-year-old man was charged in the 2007 murder of Krick. The case is still before the court.
Copyright © 2009 The Whig Standard
The operator of Kingston's biggest taxi company says he will install surveillance cameras to protect drivers.
Mark Greenwood, owner of Amey's Taxi, owns 15 cars that operate with Amey's signs on the roof. There are roughly 90 cars in Kingston that carry the Amey's sign, but the bulk of them are owned and operated by independent businesspeople.
Greenwood said other owners also are installing cameras.
"I would say they're in about 25% of our cars right now or are going to be," he said.
Last week, an Amey's driver was stabbed by a passenger in the front seat who jabbed him in the chest with an X-Acto knife and then stole the cab. The driver was not seriously hurt, Greenwood said.
That taxi did not yet have any safety equipment.
Last August, the body that regulates and governs the local cab industry ordered car owners to install one of three safety options in each car: an external flashing emergency light, a shield separating driver and rear seat passengers or a camera.
The safety measures were ordered after an outcry by taxi drivers in the wake of the murder in 2007 of Amey's driver David Krick.
The lights cost $300. Barriers cost $700 and cameras cost $1,400 per car. The safety equipment must be installed within three years, or when the car is replaced, whichever comes first.
"I'm going to do what I feel would protect them best," Greenwood said. "Obviously I care about my drivers and if I do everything in my power to make sure they're safe, then I can sleep easy at night."
Greenwood said most owners have chosen to install the lights, which can be operated from inside the car by the driver. They are only useful if someone outside the taxi sees the flashing light and calls 911.
Greenwood said he's sold on the cameras. He cites recent statistics from Windsor, where there were seven violent incidents in taxis in 2007 and 11 incidents last year.
In February this year, the installation of cameras was completed in Windsor cabs. There have not been any violent incidents since.
Violent incidents, including robberies and assaults on drivers, have declined in most cities where cameras were widely installed.
"They're proven to work," Greenwood said. "I know people say it's not a shield, it just takes pictures and it helps the police catch them after the fact, but really it prevents them from doing it in the first place."
Greenwood said shields are problematic because they don't protect drivers from front-seat passengers.
In the incident last week, the fare got into the front seat, beside the driver, and stabbed him by leaning over and pushing the driver up against the door.
A 23-year-old man was charged in the assault.
A 31-year-old man was charged in the 2007 murder of Krick. The case is still before the court.
Copyright © 2009 The Whig Standard
Friday, November 06, 2009
Fellow driver calls for action
From the Whig-Standard online
Posted By ROB TRIPP
More than two years after Shelley Scott desperately tried to breathe life into a dying fellow cab driver, she laments that cabbies continue to face the same hazards.
"The same stuff, over and over again," she said morosely yesterday.
"Something has to be done." Early Wednesday morning, a
veteran Amey's taxi driver was stabbed in the chest by a passenger wielding an X-Acto knife.
According to Amey's owner Mark Greenwood, the passenger reached around from the rear seat and jabbed the 60-year-old driver.
The wounded driver got out of the car and the assailant drove off in the taxi. He ditched the vehicle and was arrested a short time later as police swarmed the area. The cabbie escaped with minor injuries.
The incident is reminiscent, though with a different outcome, of another attack on a cabbie in 2007.
Early on Father's Day morning that year, Amey's driver David Krick picked up a passenger near the YMCA. Minutes later, Krick pressed a silent panic alarm that notified his dispatcher of trouble.
Soon after, he was found lying on a sidewalk on Durham Street, bleeding profusely from stab wounds to the chest. The killer had taken his taxi.
Scott, who was driving a taxi that morning, was one of the first drivers to find Krick after a call for help. Though horrified at the sight of the unconscious, bloody victim, she performed mouth to mouth while a police officer at the scene did chest compressions until paramedics arrived.
Krick, 50, died in hospital. A 31-year-old man was later charged with murder. A preliminary hearing in the case is still underway.
The incident mobilized Scott, among many other drivers, to lobby for safety measures for cabs.
In a decision made in August last year, the body that regulates the area taxi industry ordered all cab owners to install one of three safety devices in every car, within three years, or when the car is replaced, whichever comes first.
The cab owners must install a surveillance camera, a partition between driver and passenger compartment or an external emergency flashing light that can be activated by the cab driver.
Only partitions and cameras have been shown in other cities to improve driver safety. The external flashing light is considered by many experts to be a waste of time, since it is only useful if someone outside the taxi sees the light and calls 911.
"(Safety) needs to be revisited," said Scott.
She notes that the taxi business is stringently regulated to ensure customers are well served. Drivers, for instance, cannot smoke in their cars.
"It's about protecting drivers as much as it is about setting standards for the customers," Scott said.
Taxi driving is the most dangerous legal occupation in Canada, according to Statistics Canada figures.
Between 1995 and 2005, 25 cab drivers were murdered. In that period, 18 police officers were killed on duty.
Thirty-one year veteran driver Roy Ambury, who also writes a weekly magazine about the local taxi business, was robbed five years ago by a backseat passenger who held a knife to his neck.
Ambury escaped with minor injuries.
"The uptake on these (safety measures) has been slow because people don't see it as a problem," said Ambury.
Very few taxis are now equipped with cameras. No one in Kingston has installed a partition, Ambury said.
Only Amey's taxis are equipped with GPS tracking systems tied to the central dispatch. The system allowed police to find David Krick quickly in 2007.
"I'm really thankful that Amey's has the tracking system," said Ambury, who drives for Modern Taxi.
People who work in the business accept that there is a "background level" of problems for drivers, Ambury said.
"That background level is tolerated, dealt with, because otherwise, if everybody reacted to everything in an exaggerated way, then there wouldn't be any cabs on the road," he said.
After Krick's murder, many taxi drivers complained that the people who own cabs aren't concerned about the safety of drivers, but are worried that if they have to raise fares to pay for new gear, it will drive away business.
Timothy McGonegal, 23, is charged with attempted murder, robbery, and dangerous driving in connection to the stabbing Wednesday.
He remains behind bars.
Copyright © 2009 The Whig Standard
Posted By ROB TRIPP
More than two years after Shelley Scott desperately tried to breathe life into a dying fellow cab driver, she laments that cabbies continue to face the same hazards.
"The same stuff, over and over again," she said morosely yesterday.
"Something has to be done." Early Wednesday morning, a
veteran Amey's taxi driver was stabbed in the chest by a passenger wielding an X-Acto knife.
According to Amey's owner Mark Greenwood, the passenger reached around from the rear seat and jabbed the 60-year-old driver.
The wounded driver got out of the car and the assailant drove off in the taxi. He ditched the vehicle and was arrested a short time later as police swarmed the area. The cabbie escaped with minor injuries.
The incident is reminiscent, though with a different outcome, of another attack on a cabbie in 2007.
Early on Father's Day morning that year, Amey's driver David Krick picked up a passenger near the YMCA. Minutes later, Krick pressed a silent panic alarm that notified his dispatcher of trouble.
Soon after, he was found lying on a sidewalk on Durham Street, bleeding profusely from stab wounds to the chest. The killer had taken his taxi.
Scott, who was driving a taxi that morning, was one of the first drivers to find Krick after a call for help. Though horrified at the sight of the unconscious, bloody victim, she performed mouth to mouth while a police officer at the scene did chest compressions until paramedics arrived.
Krick, 50, died in hospital. A 31-year-old man was later charged with murder. A preliminary hearing in the case is still underway.
The incident mobilized Scott, among many other drivers, to lobby for safety measures for cabs.
In a decision made in August last year, the body that regulates the area taxi industry ordered all cab owners to install one of three safety devices in every car, within three years, or when the car is replaced, whichever comes first.
The cab owners must install a surveillance camera, a partition between driver and passenger compartment or an external emergency flashing light that can be activated by the cab driver.
Only partitions and cameras have been shown in other cities to improve driver safety. The external flashing light is considered by many experts to be a waste of time, since it is only useful if someone outside the taxi sees the light and calls 911.
"(Safety) needs to be revisited," said Scott.
She notes that the taxi business is stringently regulated to ensure customers are well served. Drivers, for instance, cannot smoke in their cars.
"It's about protecting drivers as much as it is about setting standards for the customers," Scott said.
Taxi driving is the most dangerous legal occupation in Canada, according to Statistics Canada figures.
Between 1995 and 2005, 25 cab drivers were murdered. In that period, 18 police officers were killed on duty.
Thirty-one year veteran driver Roy Ambury, who also writes a weekly magazine about the local taxi business, was robbed five years ago by a backseat passenger who held a knife to his neck.
Ambury escaped with minor injuries.
"The uptake on these (safety measures) has been slow because people don't see it as a problem," said Ambury.
Very few taxis are now equipped with cameras. No one in Kingston has installed a partition, Ambury said.
Only Amey's taxis are equipped with GPS tracking systems tied to the central dispatch. The system allowed police to find David Krick quickly in 2007.
"I'm really thankful that Amey's has the tracking system," said Ambury, who drives for Modern Taxi.
People who work in the business accept that there is a "background level" of problems for drivers, Ambury said.
"That background level is tolerated, dealt with, because otherwise, if everybody reacted to everything in an exaggerated way, then there wouldn't be any cabs on the road," he said.
After Krick's murder, many taxi drivers complained that the people who own cabs aren't concerned about the safety of drivers, but are worried that if they have to raise fares to pay for new gear, it will drive away business.
Timothy McGonegal, 23, is charged with attempted murder, robbery, and dangerous driving in connection to the stabbing Wednesday.
He remains behind bars.
Copyright © 2009 The Whig Standard
Thursday, November 05, 2009
Man charged after taxi driver stabbed
From the Kingston Whig-Standard Online
A 23-year-old man has been charged with attempted murder after an Amey's Taxi driver was stabbed in the chest with an X-Acto knife around 3:15 a. m. yesterday.
The 60-year-old driver's injuries were not serious. He was treated and released from hospital.
"I talked to him (yesterday) morning and he's fine," said Mark Greenwood, president of Amey's Taxi.
"He wanted to drive (Wednesday night). I told him to take a couple of days off, but he wants to drive (tonight)."
According to Greenwood, the accused approached the driver, who was parked at the Canadian Tire gas bar at Princess Street and Bath Road, and asked for a drive to Napanee.
Moments later, the accused asked to use an Interac machine, so the driver pulled over at Princess and Sir John A. Macdonald Boulevard.
At that point, Greenwood said, the fare reached around, hit the driver in the chest with his fist and ordered him out of the car.
"The driver said the guy didn't appear drunk or on drugs," said Greenwood.
After the driver complied, the accused drove the cab north along the boulevard before losing control of the vehicle, which ended up in a ditch near Hwy. 401.
By that time, police and canine units were on the lookout for the suspect.
He was arrested without incident, police say.
The man has been charged with attempted murder, robbery, dangerous driving and several other lesser charges. He appeared in bail court yesterday.
Coincidentally, this week marked the resumption of a preliminary hearing for a man accused of murdering an Amey's driver two years ago.
David Krick was stabbed to death while on duty June 16, 2007. Richard Edmund Smith is charged with first-degree murder.
"When a driver is assaulted, it's like an attack on your family," said Greenwood. "We are a family.
"Fortunately, (Wednesday's attack) turned out to be minor. I'm happy that it wasn't worse."
Copyright © 2009 The Whig Standard
A 23-year-old man has been charged with attempted murder after an Amey's Taxi driver was stabbed in the chest with an X-Acto knife around 3:15 a. m. yesterday.
The 60-year-old driver's injuries were not serious. He was treated and released from hospital.
"I talked to him (yesterday) morning and he's fine," said Mark Greenwood, president of Amey's Taxi.
"He wanted to drive (Wednesday night). I told him to take a couple of days off, but he wants to drive (tonight)."
According to Greenwood, the accused approached the driver, who was parked at the Canadian Tire gas bar at Princess Street and Bath Road, and asked for a drive to Napanee.
Moments later, the accused asked to use an Interac machine, so the driver pulled over at Princess and Sir John A. Macdonald Boulevard.
At that point, Greenwood said, the fare reached around, hit the driver in the chest with his fist and ordered him out of the car.
"The driver said the guy didn't appear drunk or on drugs," said Greenwood.
After the driver complied, the accused drove the cab north along the boulevard before losing control of the vehicle, which ended up in a ditch near Hwy. 401.
By that time, police and canine units were on the lookout for the suspect.
He was arrested without incident, police say.
The man has been charged with attempted murder, robbery, dangerous driving and several other lesser charges. He appeared in bail court yesterday.
Coincidentally, this week marked the resumption of a preliminary hearing for a man accused of murdering an Amey's driver two years ago.
David Krick was stabbed to death while on duty June 16, 2007. Richard Edmund Smith is charged with first-degree murder.
"When a driver is assaulted, it's like an attack on your family," said Greenwood. "We are a family.
"Fortunately, (Wednesday's attack) turned out to be minor. I'm happy that it wasn't worse."
Copyright © 2009 The Whig Standard
Friday, October 09, 2009
News in Brief
From The Queen's Journal Online
Thanksgiving shuttle assesses student demand
This weekend, the AMS (Queen's University Alma Mater Society) will provide a shuttle bus between campus and the Via Rail train station to assess student demand for a bus travelling that route.
The shuttle is part of the executive’s campaign pledge for a new Kingston Transit route, AMS Vice-President (Operations) Leslie Yun said.
The bus will be paid for by the Bus-It program, a mandatory fee that gives students unlimited access to city buses during the school year.
It will run Friday and Monday and will be scheduled around incoming trains from Ottawa, Montreal and Toronto.
In order to ride the shuttle, students have to pick up a free ticket at Tricolour Outfitters starting today, Yun said, adding that it’s now unclear whether the executive will fulfill its promise of a new route.
“This is a good opportunity to see what kind of demand it gets,” she said. “It will give us more concrete details to work with.”
—Rachel Kuper
Thanksgiving shuttle assesses student demand
This weekend, the AMS (Queen's University Alma Mater Society) will provide a shuttle bus between campus and the Via Rail train station to assess student demand for a bus travelling that route.
The shuttle is part of the executive’s campaign pledge for a new Kingston Transit route, AMS Vice-President (Operations) Leslie Yun said.
The bus will be paid for by the Bus-It program, a mandatory fee that gives students unlimited access to city buses during the school year.
It will run Friday and Monday and will be scheduled around incoming trains from Ottawa, Montreal and Toronto.
In order to ride the shuttle, students have to pick up a free ticket at Tricolour Outfitters starting today, Yun said, adding that it’s now unclear whether the executive will fulfill its promise of a new route.
“This is a good opportunity to see what kind of demand it gets,” she said. “It will give us more concrete details to work with.”
—Rachel Kuper
Friday, October 02, 2009
Accessible Taxis in Kingston
In the most recent issue of News From Behind the Wheel, Roy reported on the September 16 meeting to discuss Accessible Taxis in Kingston. More information about this meeting can be found by clicking the following links:
Draft report on Accessible Taxis from BMA Management Consultants
Questions and Comments from the meeting
Draft report on Accessible Taxis from BMA Management Consultants
Questions and Comments from the meeting
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Thursday, September 03, 2009
Cab fares may be on the rise
From the Kingston Whig-Standard Online
Taxi fares in Kingston could increase slightly in order to provide new wheelchair-accessible cabs for the handicapped under a draft report issued by the city this week.
The consultant's report suggests raising the "drop rate" - the fee charged to people getting into a cab - by five cents per trip to $2.85.
The money would be used to offset the costs of putting three vans equipped with wheelchair lifts and other specialized equipment on the road to serve the handicapped.
The vehicles would be operated by the city's private taxi firms and would supplement the Kingston Access Services bus, which is not available 24 hours a day and does not have the capacity to serve everyone who wants to use it.
The access service already uses taxis to supplement its coverage for people who are handicapped but still able to use ordinary cabs. A number of city buses also offer wheelchair access, but those also do not operate 24 hours a day and do not provide door-to-door service.
"We looked at a lot of different options, but we wanted to choose one that would not put the cost of these accessible taxis onto the tax base," said city commissioner Cynthia Beach, whose department commissioned the report.
The report notes that the city does not have dedicated handicapped taxis because they are a money-loser for companies under the current billing regime.
Outfitting them with lifts and other equipment costs $30,000 or more, they are more expensive to insure and use more fuel, adding $1,200 a month to the cost of putting them on the road.
Drivers don't like them because they run many fewer trips in a shift and take longer to load and unload passengers, resulting in fewer trips and lower earnings and tips for the drivers.
The report suggests by adding a nickel to each taxi fare in the city, the resulting revenue could be used to offset the costs of buying and running the specialized taxis, supplement the wages of the drivers who operate them and make accessible cabs economically viable.
"This approach offers the advantage of spreading the cost over a large customer base with limited [or] no impact on customers," the report concludes about the five-cent rate hike.
"It fully offsets the additional capital and operating costs of accessible on-demand taxi service which improves the economic viability and the sustainability of the service."
The consultants suggest issuing three accessible plates, one to each of the largest firms in the city, which would be enough to provide 24-hour service, seven days a week.
People can have their say on the proposal and read the draft report by following the links on the city's website.
The report will also be the subject of two public meetings next Wednesday, Sept. 9, at the downtown branch of the library between 2 p. m. to 4 p. m. and 7 p. m. to 9 p. m.
Copyright © 2009 The Whig Standard
Taxi fares in Kingston could increase slightly in order to provide new wheelchair-accessible cabs for the handicapped under a draft report issued by the city this week.
The consultant's report suggests raising the "drop rate" - the fee charged to people getting into a cab - by five cents per trip to $2.85.
The money would be used to offset the costs of putting three vans equipped with wheelchair lifts and other specialized equipment on the road to serve the handicapped.
The vehicles would be operated by the city's private taxi firms and would supplement the Kingston Access Services bus, which is not available 24 hours a day and does not have the capacity to serve everyone who wants to use it.
The access service already uses taxis to supplement its coverage for people who are handicapped but still able to use ordinary cabs. A number of city buses also offer wheelchair access, but those also do not operate 24 hours a day and do not provide door-to-door service.
"We looked at a lot of different options, but we wanted to choose one that would not put the cost of these accessible taxis onto the tax base," said city commissioner Cynthia Beach, whose department commissioned the report.
The report notes that the city does not have dedicated handicapped taxis because they are a money-loser for companies under the current billing regime.
Outfitting them with lifts and other equipment costs $30,000 or more, they are more expensive to insure and use more fuel, adding $1,200 a month to the cost of putting them on the road.
Drivers don't like them because they run many fewer trips in a shift and take longer to load and unload passengers, resulting in fewer trips and lower earnings and tips for the drivers.
The report suggests by adding a nickel to each taxi fare in the city, the resulting revenue could be used to offset the costs of buying and running the specialized taxis, supplement the wages of the drivers who operate them and make accessible cabs economically viable.
"This approach offers the advantage of spreading the cost over a large customer base with limited [or] no impact on customers," the report concludes about the five-cent rate hike.
"It fully offsets the additional capital and operating costs of accessible on-demand taxi service which improves the economic viability and the sustainability of the service."
The consultants suggest issuing three accessible plates, one to each of the largest firms in the city, which would be enough to provide 24-hour service, seven days a week.
People can have their say on the proposal and read the draft report by following the links on the city's website.
The report will also be the subject of two public meetings next Wednesday, Sept. 9, at the downtown branch of the library between 2 p. m. to 4 p. m. and 7 p. m. to 9 p. m.
Copyright © 2009 The Whig Standard
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