TAXICAB REGULATION AND AIRPORT TAXI OPERATIONS IN LOS ANGELES

1. TAXICAB REGULATION AND AIRPORT TAXI OPERATIONSIN LOS ANGELES PRESENTED BY TOM DRISCHLER, LA’S TAXICAB ADMINISTRATOR

2. BASIC FACTS • Los Angeles has a population of about 3.8 million, with about 15 million in the greater LA metro area. • LAX (Los Angeles International Airport) is the world’s 6th busiest airport, with about 63.7 million passengers in 2012. It’s more of a destination airport than a hub, so it has a great deal of ground transportation activity. • The LADOT contains a Taxicab Regulation Division, including a separately appointed Taxicab Administrator, to deal with taxicab service issues, all permitting and enforcement functions, and to report to a Board of Taxicab Commissioners.

3. TAXI FRANCHISE BASICS • There are nine franchised taxicab operators in LA, utilizing 2,361 permitted taxicabs and more than 3,000 active drivers. These vehicles and drivers are authorized to provide taxicab trips originating within the City of Los Angeles and LAX. LADOT permits all drivers and vehicles. • LA uses a franchise system – no medallions. Nine of the 13 companies that participated in a competitive bid process in 2000 were granted taxicab franchises in Los Angeles. In 2010, all nine operators were granted extensions of the franchise grants to the end of 2015, with the possibility of two one-year further extensions (to end of 2017). • If a company loses its franchise, all its vehicle authorities and the right to provide service in Los Angeles goes away.

4. SPECIAL SERVICES • LA has a Green Taxi Program utilizing SULEV emission rated hybrid and alternative fueled vehicles. There were 1,274 green vehicles in service as of August 31, 2013, with a minimum of 1,703 to be placed into service by the end of 2015 (minimum of 72% of entire fleet). • All taxicab operators must maintain and operate a minimum number of wheelchair accessible taxis. There are currently 240 ADA accessible vans in taxicab service (approximately 10% of the entire fleet). • All LADOT permitted taxis are eligible to serve the airport, and they are the only taxis in the LA area that can pick up passengers there.

5. TAXI RATES Taxicab rates are set by the Taxicab Commission and the City Council - based upon analyses and recommendations of LADOT.

6. LAX ENFORCEMENT • LADOT maintains an extensive set of rules pertaining to vehicle condition, driver behavior and general service provisions. • At LAX, violations of LADOT rules are enforced by LAX police, who are authorized to write LADOT citations. • Citations are then adjudicated by LADOT Transportation Investigators - and can be appealed to the Taxi Commission. • ATS Supervisors and Starters also write citations pertaining to other LAX rule violations - adjudicated by a separate hearing process utilizing a judge.

7. LAX TAXI AGREEMENT • Each of the nine franchised taxi companies has an operating agreement with the Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) encompassing the rules and privileges for providing taxicab trips from the airport. Vehicle registration, annual inspections, driver and vehicle permitting and service evaluations are all functions performed by LADOT.

8. LADOT/LAX COMMUNICATIONS • LADOT frequently communicates with LAWA on taxi related issues, including current vehicle and driver eligibility, green taxis, the minimum fare from LAX, the flat rate between LAX and Downtown LA, the LAX surcharge amount (which is passed on the the public), the problem of drivers working too many consecutive hours on their “airport” day, consumer complaints, driver working conditions, and public relations, among many other topics. • LADOT Investigators will often hold vehicle inspections, testing and surveys at the LAX holding lot. • Whenever a vehicle becomes ineligible for service due to condition or driver status, the information is forwarded to LAX for removal of airport service authority.

9. LAX TAXI OPERATIONS • The LAX taxi dispatching system is managed by Authorized Taxicab Supervision (ATS), a non-profit company run cooperatively by the nine taxicab companies. It has been in place in its current structure for about 30 years. • Each LA taxicab is allowed to work the airport one day out of every five days. When cabs are placed into service, they are given a designation of either A, B, C, D or E (depending on the last number of the taxicab fleet slot). Cabs may occasionally work on their non-airport day on a temporary basis if the demand exceeds the number of cabs available at any one time. This tends to happen on Sunday nights and Mondays during the summer or on holiday weekends.

10. LAX Taxi Operations Cont’d: • ATS dispatches about 1.6 million taxi trips annually. It is capable of dispatching as many as 7,000 trips in a 24 hour period. • The LAX taxicab holding lot has a capacity of about 120 vehicles. • There are nine taxi stands in the LAX central terminal area. During busy times, they are staffed with starters who communicate with the dispatch center via radio. Only taxis dispatched from the holding lot may wait for passengers at these taxi stand locations.

11. LAX Taxi Operations – Surcharge Fee • Drivers pay the $4 surcharge for each LAX trip up front, and then collect this same amount from the passenger as a trip surcharge. ATS has installed a cashless kiosk system for this driver payment within the last year.

12. LAX Taxi Operations – Surcharge Fee Debit Card

13. LAX Taxi Operations – Dispatch Initiation/Payment • The $4 surcharge amount is automatically debited from the drivers card when entering the holding lot dispatch center. Drivers may pay for a number of trips ahead of time as a credit to their account.

14. LAX Taxi Operations - Dispatch • Cabs are assigned to specific taxi stands from the dispatching center located in the LAX holding lot. ATS tracks the location of every cab by transponders.

15. LAX Taxi Operations - Dispatch

16. LAX Taxi Operations - Dispatch

17. LAX Taxi Operations - Dispatch • Each cab is issued a trip ticket as it is dispatched, which is then handed to the customer at the time of passenger loading in the Central Terminal Area. An informational notice is also provided.

18. LAX Taxi Operations - Reporting • ATS provides various reports regarding trips taken, funds collected, complaints received, violations, etc.

19. LAX Taxi Operations – Office

20. LAX Taxi Operations – Amenities • ATS provides various amenities for drivers such as a free car wash, break area, food truck, restrooms, televisions and dispatch line waiting area.

21. LAX Taxi Operations – Amenities

22. LAX Taxi Operations – Dispatch from Holding Lot

23. LAX Taxi Operations – Holding Lot

24. LAX Taxi Operations – to Terminal Stands

25. LAX Taxi Operations – to Terminal Stands

26. LAX Taxi Operations – Terminal Map

27. LADOT WEBSITES • LADOT maintains a Taxi Commission website for listing of meetings, reports, taxi rules, etc.: http://ladot.lacity.org/about_Commissions_taxicab_records.htm • LADOT also maintains a taxi services website for rates, taxi operator contact info, complaints and more: http://www.taxicabsla.org/ • ATS maintains a customer trouble line for assistance and complaints at: (323) 776-HELP - (323)776-4357