Jason Flanagan, The Examiner
2008-03-26 07:00:00.0
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BALTIMORE -

Taxicabs looking to pick up fares in Anne Arundel may face tougher regulations that could force out independent drivers while requiring all drivers to be more polite.

“There have been a couple of operators who have come in recently that are self-insured rather than through a carrier certified by the state,” said Betty Dixon, director of the county’s Inspections and Permits Department.

A proposal before the County Council would essentially mandate all taxicabs working in the county to belong to a company that operates three cabs or more.

The idea is to better control the type of taxicab operation in the county, though those who do not work within a company could suffer under the bill.

County Executive John R. Leopold is calling the proposal a “consumer protection bill.”

Under the proposal, taxicab companies would be required to:

» Staff a stationary office, where records would be kept, within the county;

» Answer the phone all day, every day;

» Make sure the cab drivers are “courteous” and do not use “abusive or offensive language when dealing with the public.”

The drivers must also:

» Be 21 years old;

» Not have a history of drug or alcohol abuse;

» Have not been convicted of a felony within a three-year period.

There will also be a $100 application fee, and the permits must be renewed every year at the same costs.

Some of the proposed regulations are common fare among other governments, particularly requiring a base within the county and age requirements of drivers, said Alfred Algasse, chief executive officer of the Rockville-based Taxicab, Limousine and Paratransit Association.

But the provisions requiring “courteous” behavior may prove troublesome, he said.

Dixon said there have been some complaints of rude drivers.

“You have a lot of foreign-born drivers who come from different customs. We have different levels of what is considered courteous behavior,” Algasse said.

“How do you expect to enforce such a law? To say that’s legally enforceable is tough.”

The bill goes up for public debate April 22.

jflanagan@baltimoreexaminer.com