The Washington herald., 1913-06-14
TAXICAB RATES
TO BE PROBED
Public Utilities Commission
Makes Announcement Of
Investigation in City.
TO ESTABLISH CHARGES
Action Comes After Exposure Of Con.
ditions by The Washington
Herald.

Close upon The Washington Herald,
expose o. exorbitant taxicab charges
in Washington came formal notice from
the Public Utilities Commission yester.
day to the effect that this body intends
TO thoroughly investigate the taxicat
business in the District Of Columbia and
TO establish a schedule of charges which
viii be just to the public and TO the cab
companies.
People of Washington complain that
the present charges are prohibitive.
These charges are 20 cents for the first
mile and 10 cents for each succeeding
mile. They are materially higher than
the charges of the New York tariff.
They are from three to four times
greater than cab rates in the large CAPT.
tails abroad.
One independent taxicab operator es-
timated that a taXicab costs 30 cents q
mile to operate. This c-.arge of 20 cents
he said, covers the costs of labor gaso-
line, wear and tear on the machine cost
Of repairs, tires, garage fees, taxes, and
special license fees. He said that he
could meet ALL these expenses and make
a handsome profit at a fiat charge of 81
cents mile. He does not. however, pay
a high tribute to local hotels.
On the plea of protecting their guests.
the hotel arrangements give exclusive
surrounding their places to certain cab
companies. The way these deals are
closed will possibly prove of interest to
the utilities commission. According to a
statement of taXicab official (and this
statement was made in defense of the
hotels), the following circumlocutory
method of bargain is employed:
The hotel rents an exclusive cab seFv-
icr for its guests. In this part of the
transaction the hotel is the paying party
The favored cab company submits data
conc 'rning its facilities for properly car
ing for the traffic and copies of its tariff
to the hotel. Ii satisfactory. the hotel
rents" the service 1t makes payment
by promise that said company will have
the exclusive right to use the public
str-cts around its pace of business; il
also probably promises to keep the streets
there. The cab companies pay a bonus
of real money" which is a percentage
of every fare carried from such sections
OF public thorOughfares in which the no.
tel has property rights. to the hotel man
agement for the privilege of receiving
imaginary rent" This will possibly be
required TO be explained by the utilities
body.
People who use taxicabs in Washing
ton pay n percentage of their fare TO
hotel. restaurant, and wine room for the
kindness of the mana gemeRts of these
various places in permitting the public |
streets to be used. This percentage is
disguised in the 3O-cents-a- mile cost of |
operation.
That these things will he investigated |
II the statement of the utilities body in |
report forwarded TO Congress yester-
dav This report was an unfavorable one |
on bill introduced by Senator Works |
OF California to fix and regulate rates |
and charges by taXicab companies and |
other vehicles. The Commissioners ex-
planned that il was the business Of the
Utilities Commission to establish and en-
force rates