Need a cab? Carry more cash
By Joshua Sabatini
Examiner Staff Writer 10/2/08
Gas prices strike again: San Francisco taxi fares, already among the highest in the nation, are slated to increase Nov. 1 due to inflation and rising fuel prices. Examiner file photo SAN FRANCISCO – Come November, you may be diving into your pockets for an additional 50 cents to pay for the initial cost of hopping into a taxi, according to a new report.
Taxicab fares will automatically go up Nov. 1 with the “flag drop” — the initial cost of getting into a cab — increasing from $3.10 to $3.35, barring any action by the Board of Supervisors. The cost per mile will also increase from $2.25 to $2.50 while the price per minute of waiting time will rise from 45 cents to 50 cents, according to the required City Controller’s Office report on the taxi industry issued every two years.
The report additionally proposes that the Board of Supervisors adopt an additional 25-cent charge to the flag drop, bringing the total hike to 50 cents. If the proposal and the inflation adjustment are approved, the flag drop will rise to $3.60.
The increases reflect the adjustment for inflation since 2006 and will help absorb high fuel costs and the rising cost-of-living for cab drivers, officials said.
The last time a fare increase went into effect was two years ago, but since then, the average driver’s income has decreased by 15 percent, in part due to higher gas prices.
Since November 2006, gasoline costs went up 69 percent, from $2.46 per gallon to $4.15 per gallon.
San Francisco taxicab fares have notoriously been among the highest in the nation, but the rising fuel costs have prompted other cities in recent months to increase fares, the report found.
San Jose’s flag drop is $3.50 and a five-mile trip would cost $19.70. That same trip in a San Francisco cab currently costs $16.15. With the increases, that cost will rise to $18.10.
Taxicab Commission Executive Director Jordanna Thigpen said the concern with the fare increase is that people will not take
taxicabs if they become cost-prohibitive.
She also said there are other ways to put dollars in cabdrivers’ pockets through measures such as cracking down on hotel doormen or taxi dispatchers who demand tips from cabdrivers in exchange for the most lucrative fares and cracking down on illegal limousines.
Paul Gillespie, president of the Taxi Commission and San Francisco cabdriver, said in recent months, drivers have given him “a lot of grief” for not leading a charge to increase fares given the high cost of gas.
“At some point, it’s going to happen. I don’t know what the right amount is,” Gillespie said.
Cabdriver Mark Gruberg said a fare increase is “warranted” and people will understand given the cost at the gasoline pumps.
The Taxicab Commission will discuss the report at its Oct. 14 meeting.
my story
“They can raise the drop rate just as long as they increase the number of cabs on the road.”
“I would be willing to pay for the convenience. Fifty cents is not that much.”
Tom Niu, 41,San Francisco
Taxicabs’ share of the transit sector
Taxicabs: 40,000-50,000 trips per day for local patrons and travelers
Muni: 686,000 daily boardings
Residents who commute to work via private car: 190,000
Proposed fare increases
Flag drop Per mile Waiting time per minute
Current $3.10 $2.25 $0.45
Inflation adjustment $3.35 $2.50 $0.50
Inflation plus fuel surcharge $3.60 $2.50 $0.50
Compared with other cities
City 5-mile comparative trip cost
San Jose $19.70
Boston $18.53
San Francisco (proposed) $18.10
Oakland $17.17
San Francisco (current) $16.15
New York $14.50
Houston $13.16
Chicago $12.72
Source: City Controller’s Office, Taxicab Commission
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