Evening star., 1942-11-24
Hearing on Taxi
Group Riding at
All Hours Slated
PUG Sets Dec. ! to
Explore Plan With
ODT, OPA and Others

Proposals for placing all Wash
ngton taxicabs on full-fledged
group riding" and pickup service
orders, with attendant changes in
fares and conditions of service, will
be aired by the Public Utilities Com
mission at conference at 10 am.
next Tuesday with spokesmen for
ODT, OPA, motor clubs and taxi
industry.
The conference was called last
night by James H. Flanagan, PUG
chairman, in response to demands
by the ODT that every effort be
made to conserve taxis, their tires
and gasoline and to enable cabs to
give the fullest possible service in
carrying war workers.
Thrown out for discussion are
suggestions received informally last
summer by the commission, when
other troublesome taxi problems
were pending, but Mr.. Flanagan said
TO one, as yet. was committed to
any specific plan. He said he hoped
agreement would be reached on
some plan which would accomplish
the Federal aims as to conservation
end transportation of war workers.
May Regulate Hours.
In addition to a uniform group
riding plan and extension of the
rush-hour pickup service, the con-
ference is to discuss possible means
OF placing cab drivers on more or
less regular hours of service, with
sn idea OF assuring adequate service
IN inclement weather and early
morning hours as we'll as in the
better" working hours.
Also the conference is to be asked
to consider emergency taxicab serv-
Ice, elimination of taxicab cruising
and cab service to outlying" areas.
Cruising already is prohibited by
PUG orders, but there are doubts
about enforcement and questions
will be raised as to whether there
ere sufficient taxi stands.
The proposed group riding plan
would apply to all taxicabs, except
TOR certain emergency services, and
would be on a 24-hour basis, using
the PUG zone-subzone uniform sys-
tenn of rates as basis. In appli-
cation, however, there would be a
difference in charges, with the in
dividual rider paying less, but with
the driver collecting considerably
more for trips when he hauls a
group of passengers instead of a
single passenger or a party Of two
Rates Scale Suggested.
One change would be that where
two passengers, travelling as a party,
now ride for one fare, each would
have to pay fare under group rid
Ing. The plan proposes the same
system of fares for the emergency
pickup services as for the group
riding program.
The suggested rates would be as
follows:
For a trip confined to zone /, or
confined to any subzone of zones 2,
3 or 4, 20 cents per passenger.
For trip between a point in zone
! and a point in zone 2, or for a trip
between points in adjoining sub
zones lin the same Zone), Is cents
per passenger.
(The present zone -subzone rate
order prescribes sliding scale of
30-50-70-90 cents for one, two,
three or four zone trips, this scale
also being applied roughly to trips
between subzones of one or more
Hones)
For all other trips the plan pro-
vides. a fare per passenger equal to
cne-half the single passenger fare
prescribed for such a trip by the
prevailing PUG order shall be
charged. 1t was agreed this clause
would require continued use of the
zone-subzone rate order for proposed
group riding or pickup services.
Assures Higher Cab Rate.
As last clause, the plan provides
that in no case shall the aggregate
fares collected by the driver (under
group riding be less than the pre-
vailing rate between the point of
origin and the point of destination
The commission attached rate
chart to it's conference call to il
llstrate how the suggested plan
would affect rates. For instance,
where the charge for single rider
for a one-zone trip now is 30 cents,
under group riding it would be 20
cents per person. With three per-
sons riding, such one-zone trip
would cost, under present rules, 40
cents( an extra dime for the third
person. and under the group-riding
plan 60 cents, or 20 cents apiece.
For four persons, the present rate
would be so cents and under the new
plan 80 cents
For four-zone trip. under present
rules, the fare would be 30 cents for
one or two passengers, with an added
dime for each additional passenger
over two n the party, but under
the group-riding plan the price
would be As cents for each passenger,