D.C. Diary: Good Riddance, Taxi Zones
Express' Greg Barber will never be able to hail a cab in this town again.
WHEN THOSE SPECIAL ELEMENTS that are essentially D.C. disappear, I usually mourn. I fondly remembered childhood slogs through Woodies when Mom was on a bargain-hunting binge. I stared in stunned silence earlier this year at the burned-out shell of Eastern Market (which will, we hope, rise again).
But taxi zone system, I dance on your grave.
It's hard to fathom how such an ill-conceived notion managed to dig in its heels and resist the winds of change and common sense as this load of hooey has for decades.
Say it's distinctively D.C. Say it's the only way our fleet of cabs — large for such a small city, drivers allege — can keep chugging. Say that somehow, inexplicably, the zone system actually saves customers money.
I don't buy it.
Nearly anyone who's dared to hop into a D.C. cab has a tale of woe to tell about how a ride they've taken time and again will vary wildly in price thanks to drivers who seem to tally up zones on a whim, like ordering mix-ins at Maggie Moo's. Or drivers who simply turned them down if they were foolish enough to request a ride within just one zone.
Just a few months ago, I had a driver dismissively shake his head when I asked for a ride from outside the Old Ebbitt Grill — firmly within Zone 1 — to the Capitol, which sits inside the same zone. It'll be $11.50, he said — a three-zone fare. "It's one zone!" I protested. "No," he said with pity and annoyance, "it's not." I walked instead.
My colleague Marc Fisher, a reasoned guy, has argued that the zone system is "a jewel" that allows business people to cruise the central district and low-income residents easy access to neighborhood shops, all for a low rate — an economic boon to both commerce and the poor.
In theory, that's true. But wouldn't those riders be subject to the same uncertainty the rest of us face when we hail a D.C. cab? And wouldn't those riders get just as fed up with deciphering the redesigned-but-still-cryptic zone map and arguing with drivers over how many zones they've traveled?
Besides, won't those who take short trips still pay relatively little — perhaps even less — under a meter system?
The zone system was a relic. Doing away with it will make hailing a taxi in D.C. more of a reliable service and less a game of pocketbook roulette.
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Addison Road
This is Great!! I can actually start taking cabs in this town without arguing and haggling. How could anyone (besides drivers) have favored the zone system?
By PG , Posted October 17, 2007 3:44 PMeasy - zones are simply better. surely there are drivers who are unscrupulous, and they won't gain any with a meter. the zone system ensures that it's affordable to go from one end of the city to another, and not face the whims of DC's ridiculously bad transporation planning and terrible traffic. i take cabs at least 4 times a week, and i've only once had trouble (i got into an unlicensed cab when in a rush). pay attention to the signs posted in the back of your cab. everyone's rights are spelled out clearly there. also the zone vs. meter study proves that zoned fares are fundamentally cheaper.
By claude , Posted October 18, 2007 12:02 AMSee, I'd rather face the whims of traffic than the whims of unscrupulous drivers any day. And it's only affordable to go from one end of the city to the other using the zone system if everyone plays by the same rules. It also depends on your departure and destination points -- my guess, Claude, is that, like me, you're a Zone 1 traveler, right?
By Greg Barber , Posted October 18, 2007 7:28 AMI wasn't sure which way would be cheaper, but look no further than the fact that taxi drivers are so firmly against meters that they're even considering a strike. This tells me either: (1) the days of ripping riders off and pocketing the extra pay are over, and/or (2) the meter system will be cheaper, meaning smaller tips for the drivers.
By Anonymous , Posted October 20, 2007 2:29 AM