Taxi driver shenanigans are certainly no new phenomena, but that won't stop some intrepid reporters from heading undercover to expose the secret world of cabbie trickery. And what they discovered is that many taxi drivers are ignoring their required E-Z pass tags at tolls and bridges to instead use cash lanes that cost riders more.
The Post took 12 rides over ten consecutive days and observed an average of 56 cabs a day at the cash lanes on the Queens-Midtown Tunnel (between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m.). One tunnel officer told them, "This goes on all the time. [At] the cash lanes, especially during rush hour, there could be a seven-minute wait. That meter is ticking." Between the extra time in rush hour as well as the slightly higher fare (the cash toll is $5.50, E-Z pass discount brings it down to $4.57), that comes to an estimated $750,000 a year in overcharges.
Having said that...they immediately followed up that exposé with another report that assures passengers that "most cabbies are honest when it comes to toll lanes." Since many drivers have been pretty annoyed about the generalizations with the overcharging scandal last month, maybe they're just trying to avoid being the subject of another Cabbie Gripers Anonymous meeting.
But if isn't one thing, there's always another gripe to be had: in a separate undercover operation, the Post found that despite the threat of big fines, the majority of taxi drivers speed around the city regularly. According to one NYPD commander, taxis are responsible for about 50 percent of car crashes in Midtown, but enforcement has become more lax, with 18.3 million tickets give out last year, down from 24.3 million in 2008. And one anonymous officer broke it down further: "We don't generally pull you over unless you're going 15 to 20 over the limit, but don't quote me on that."
