The Washington times., 1913-11-02
THE TAXICABS AND THE PUBLIC.

A man with an important business engagement
in New York left his office and walked to the taxi
cab stand of leading hotel to get cab to the Union
Station. He had no minutes to spare. There were
nine cabs lined up at the curb occupying the public
Sreet-not the hotels street, nor the taxcab COM
panys street.
| Cab to the Union Station, in hurry" he said.
/ He had said exactly that dozens of other times,
and been quickly bundled into gasolene buggy and
rushed to the station But not so this time.
Are you guest of the hotel?" asked the starter
mo; why? I've got the price; isn't it good? II
always has been'
Sorry, but we can't take you
At the end of an exchange of agitated expletves
and superheated sentiment the golden moments had
fitted idly by and the man missed his train.
This incident is happening altogether too often
nowadays. The taxicab people are playing horse
with the people and the public utilities law, in fash
ion that is not going to claim much longer the patient
indulgence of disguised community.
The Times showed, some months ago, that the
hotels of the town are getting away. with about
$4,000 annually for renting cab privileges to the
taxi companies. These cab stands in the streets,
which owned, not by the hotels not even by the
city of Washington the District of Columbia: but
by the United States Government as all streets here
are owned. ~
| Notwithstanding, the hotels have arrangements,
each with particular taxicab company under which
that company has the exclusive right to take pas
sengers away from that hotel the taxicab concerns
in return for this monopoly right pay fixed percent
ages of their earnings to the hotels There is some
sort of fiction about the hotels leasing the axicabs
from their owners and thus making them private We
hcles But it is technicaliy and subterfuge for the
purpose of avoiding the obligations of common
carrier.
For years, despite this fiction that the taxcabs
were kept there for the accommodation of the hotels
guests only it the unbroken custom to hire them
to whoever applied for their The public not
greatly inconvenienced it merely robbed of the
amount that the hotel companies extracted from the
taxi companies; but so long as the operation was co
Quoted in decency and good FORM nobody did much
worrying. Moreover, the public didn't know, until il
learned through The Times exposure that the hotel
companies were pulling down slice of the taxicab
charge, and, of course, making the public pay it out
of the rate charged.
Then came public utilities legislation, and the
taxcab companies were anxious to prove that they
were not common carriers and subject to regulation
So they have adopted the plan-n some cases, at
eastof refusing to take passengers from the hotels
unless these passengers be registered guests of the
hotels. The taxcab suddenly becomes private We
hice, instead of public facility, and the public, not
aware of its changed and more aristocratic status
finds itself, in effect without taxicab service.
What the public wants to know is this:
Can the hotels and the Washington Terminal
Company make the public pay big fee for the
of ITS OWN STREETS-the public's own streets
when it rides in cab?
Can they use those streets for the purpose of thus
~ ooI 81,
suits their whim, REFUSE TO LET THE PUBLIC
USE THE CONVEYANCES EVEN WHEN 1T is
WILLING TO PAY THE EXCESSIVE PRICE?
The situation is unbearable. 1t would not be tol-
Grated in any other city There is excuse for its
federation here, because there is law and power
enough on the side of the Public Utilities Commits
sion, to enforce decent treatment and reasonable
rates in the public interest.
Nothing is necessary further than to declare that
the taXicabs common carriers; just merely to
nounce officially that white is white and black is
black Everybody knows they common carriers,
and commonly carry.
Then proclaim that the hotel taxicab stands are
PUBLIC cab stands, and permit anybodys taxicabs
to use them; don't let any concern have monopoly
at any hotel and don't permit the hotels to collect
huge tax the public for using the public streets.
That will be enough to end the taxicab graft and
settle the question whether the public has any rights
at all that anybody need respect.
Then adopt regulation of fares under which the
meter will be started 25 cents, instead of so cents
as now, and its various upward clicks will sound
little less like the trigger action of hghwaymant
gun.
These are things that, along with universal trans
fers the public expects from the Public Utilities
Commission. They are things Congress intended the
commission should do. Right is the best time to
do, them. ... n