Cab drivers feel
pain of new rulesAirport pickup fees of $4 leave
some drivers feeling fleeced
Taxi cab drivers say new rules for picking up passengers at Honolulu Airport that went into effect yesterday are cutting into their wallets.
The drivers are most upset that the new company managing taxis at the airport did away with an option allowing them to operate at the airport for a monthly $400 fee.
Now, taxi drivers must pay a $4 fee for each pickup -- which they said can be as much as half of a fare.
Still there was no shortage of cabs yesterday at the airport, nor of opinions that the new rules are unfair.
"They take your money," said Lee Saunders, who started as an airport driver a year ago. "Everything is one-sided for them to make the money."
"It's totally messed up," agreed cabbie Tony Nguyen. "We don't like it. But what can we do?"
"We pay more than we earn," said one driver, who asked not to be named.
Another cabbie, who identified herself as D.W., said that "we're just asking what is fair."
"That's all we need," she added.
But the state is sticking by the changes implemented by the new operator to fix years of problems at Honolulu Airport's taxicab operations.
"We feel we're trying to keep an open and fair system," said state Department of Transportation spokesman Scott Ishikawa.
Ishikawa has said the driver's monthly fee was eliminated because some cabbies were abusing the system and allowing other drivers to use the permits.
He said the option could be replaced in the coming months, once the state gets an accurate count of how many rides are leaving the airport.
"We feel that putting in a third party ... will kind of make it a more level playing field," he said.
Under the new system, drivers will also be issued a trip ticket with a bar code to verify that a certain driver is assigned to that particular trip to the airport. Drivers must also submit to vehicle inspections every time they make a trip to the airport.
Circuit Judge Victoria Marks denied a motion earlier this week to halt the implementation of new regulations by AMB Industries Inc., which took over the contract to manage taxis at the airport yesterday.
Previously, Signature Cab Holdings, which does business as The Cab and Americabs, had the contract.
The motion was filed by the Honolulu Cabbies Association, which represents about 400 independent drivers.