Evening star., 1951-03-22

WIenIS on April l.;
Some Zones Changed
Taxi fares in the District will
60 up 10 cents ride on April l.. /
The Public Utilities Commission
ordered the increase yesterday
afternoon for both single passen-
ger and group riding fares.
The new fares for the eight .
zones will range from 40 cents to
$1.80 for single passengers. and
from 80 cents to 81 for group
giders.
The 10-cent boost in single pas
senger rates and number OF other
changes were asked in a petition
from District taxi drivers last
January.
The drivers had sought to in
crease group riding fares only S
cents, however, and to limit them
to instances where two or more
persons entered cab at the same
time and same place.
Alternative Plan Adopted.
Instead, the PUG adopted an
alternative plan, increasing group
riding fares 10 cents, and refused
to change the regulations that
apply the cheaper rates whenever
two or more passengers occupy !
cab at any one time during any
trip.
Yesterdays order also made
number of zone boundary changes.
In the Northeast section, it moved
a boundary in from the District
line to South Dakota avenue and
created fourth zone.
To compensate for the resulting
shortening of the third zone, the
existing boundary line of Subzone
&c was moved from Fourteenth
to Twelfth street.
Another subzone boundary in
the vicinity of the Armory and
the circus grounds was moved
from Kingman Lake to Nineteenth!
street, and, consequently, the
boundary line of present Subzone
4-D was moved from Forty ninth
street to Forty-Second street NE,
Three-zone Trip.
Another subzone boundary was
created on the line of Texas ave-
niue across Fort Dupont Park and
along the line of Thirty eighth /
street to the intersection of Ala
bama avenue and Thirty-eighth
street.
1t was pointed out by a COM
mission witness during the hear
ing on the petition that. under
present conditions. a trip from
Zone ! to any point on Alabama
avenue between Pennsylvania ave-
nue. and the District line is a
three-zone trip. but in view of the
distance involved, it should be
considered a four-zone trip.
An existing overlap Of two sub
zones in the Potomac Park area !
was eliminated by establishing q
boundary extending from Consti- ,
tuition avenue at Twenty-second
street around the Lincoln Memo
riol and orrocc NKapo0r;ol priIrn y
Certain related minor modif1-
cations in other boundaries were
made as result of these changes.
Other Changes.
Other changes ordered include:
The charge for a taxicab en-
ployed on an hourly basis will go
up from $3.50 for the first hour or
fraction to $3.50, and from so
cents for each additional Is
minutes or fraction to 80 cents.
Trunks will be charged for at
the rate of 81 each, as compared
with the present so cents.
The commission. in its opinion,
noted there was little opposition |;
in the record on the changes pro- {
posed by the taxi drivers, except
on the subject of group riding. l
1t pointed out that the drivers
proposal would have resulted in a
situation where a passenger en-
tering cab alone would pay
single passenger rates, while others
getting in the same cab in groups
would enjoy the lower group rid .
ing rates.
Sees Group Riding Needed.
The commission said it felt this
condition would counteract the !
present inducement for sharing
the ride and probably would result
in continued insistence by the first
passenger that the driver not try
to pick up more passengers. ,
THE need for group riding
presently exists" it said. "and ,
there is strong pobability that, in
the immediate future. it may be
even more important"
The PUG also set five blocks as
the deviation limit from the most
direct route to the destination of
the first passenger engaging a
cab in group riding. An entension
of the trip to carry other passen-
gers to their destination will not
constitute such a deviation. Il