Tensions are growing between local taxi companies and the Syracuse Airport Authority after a recently announced city council proposal that would allow Syracuse Regional Airport Taxi to operate in the city of Syracuse.

Currently, the official taxi service of Syracuse Hancock International Airport is only allowed to transport passengers to and from the airport. The new legislation would expand Syracuse Regional Airport Taxi services to the rest of the city, according to public documents released by the Syracuse City Council.

The legislation faced immediate pushback at a recent town hall meeting from several local taxi companies. Their main complaint was that the proposal would increase competition around the city for taxis and cause a decline in business, according to an email by Hancock Airport executive director Christina Callahan.

One component of the legislation states that only 15 Syracuse Regional Airport Taxi drivers will be permitted to operate in the city. One of the major issues other taxi companies have with this part of the ordinance is “the issue of utilizing city designated cab stands to pick up fares,” Callahan said.

One of the councilmen working on the legislation, Jake Barrett, said the Hancock Airport Authority has been working on the ordinance to accommodate these complaints.

To many taxi drivers and company owners, such as Blue Star Taxi owner Sonny Singh, allowing more vehicles at the taxi stands throughout the city will create a battle over customers between companies.

90 percent of the fares of smaller, independent taxi companies operating in Syracuse are picked up at these taxi stands, Callahan said.

“All those 15 cabs, they’re going to be sitting on the SU campus, they’re going to sit in Armory Square, waiting for these people,” Singh said in an Aug. 31 Time Warner Cable news story. “Just like the independents, it’s going to be a battle.”

As of Friday, the Hancock Airport Authority released changes to the legislation to address complaints. Now, the 15 drivers will be prohibited from operating around taxi stands.

“I am hopeful that you will see this as a good faith effort on the Airport’s part…to find a workable compromise to what seems to be the biggest issue,” Callahan said in the email.

Suburban Transportation, the company that runs Syracuse Regional Airport Taxi, released this statement regarding the legislation:

“Any individual has the freedom of choice to arrange transportation services with any for-hire taxi or livery operator. A city taxi license entitles the license holder nothing more than the right to stand-by and be hailed off the city streets or line up in cab stands, such as the RTC, Destiny, Armory Square, or at the University. We are not interested in being hailed off the street or sitting in line at cab stands in the city.”

No deadline has been set for this legislation, as councilmen are allowing both parties to fully discuss the legislation and make any changes before going through an official review.

For now, Syracuse Regional Airport Taxi is confined to the airport.

Published on September 8, 2015 at 10:04 pm

Contact Hanna: hrhorvat@syr.edu