Kathleen Horan
Kathleen Horan has worked at WNYC Radio since 2001 and been a reporter in the newsroom since 2006.
Credit Cards in Cabs Under Review
Friday, May 02, 2008
New York, NY –
Are credit card machines in the city's yellow cabs an improvement? City Council members posed that question yesterday and the answers they received were dramatically different. Taxi and Limousine Commissioner Matthew Daus says the technology is working well and that drivers' tips have nearly doubled since the beginning of the year.
DAUS: They're making money - they're making more money than ever before. I don't buy the arguments. I don't believe it and refusing to use the credit cards? They should be embracing it and embracing the passengers that have paid their bills.
REPORTER: As Daus testified, drivers held signs that said "Stop the Five Percent Heist" or simply, "LIES".
Cabbie Beressford Simmons says he's not making extra tips and the five percent fee he's charged each time a credit card is swiped hurts.
SIMMONS: I’m losing a lot of money right now. I’ve done about 30 to 40 percent of my transactions lately is credit card. It’s incredible - I have no money to buy gas."
REPORTER: Many drivers support legislation that would give them the right to be their own merchant account holder so they can lower their credit card fees. The TLC has been asked to submit more financial data about the credit card machines to the council before they schedule another hearing.
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