BTV Taxi News

We suspect they’ll need remove their shoes.  What do you think?

The following has come to our attention.

The Problem: Some airport taxi operators are turning their meters on before passengers enter their vehicle.

The Immediate Solution.  If, when you settle into an airport metered taxi the meter is already displaying the $8.50 minimum figure(which is correct), request the Operator reset the meter in your presence.  If you are refused, please exit the taxi and hire another who waits for you to get settled in before starting the meter.

[Should time allow, please advise an Airport Ambassador of your reasons for changing taxis, and better yet, take note of the company and please contact BTV Operations Manager, Mr. Rick Varney with your experience, at: rvarney@btv.aero.  He'd be most interested.]

The Why’s.  Some of the Operators are priming their meters in hopes of beating customers out of a maximum of $5.  So we’re only talking short sighted crooked, LOL, but nonetheless the sorts who should be weeded out of the airport, as the airport taxi Operators are quite often Vermont’s first representation to the outside world(whose patronage, frankly, we all rely upon to one extent of another).

How it works.  The $8.50 minimum fare includes up to 2 miles of travel and/or waiting time.  So some Operators who think themselves clever souls have begun starting and then pausing(Time Off) their meter when they calculate that the $8.50 minimum is just about expired.

A sure sign the Operator is cheating you is if the meter begins accumulating dimes as you’re rolling out the exit of the airport.  Meaning the Operator has timed it well enough to get the whole fiver, and more telling, that he/she is practiced!!  In which case, for one reason or another,  ask the Operator to swing back into the airport, then refuse to pay, and immediately report the incident to an Airport Ambassador while requesting the presence of a Burlington Airport Police Officer -if you would please- followed by a note to Mr. Rick Varney, as noted above.

If nothing else, it should develop into an entertaining story you can share for years to come.

At the very least! there will be some “instant karma” as the Operator will lose your fare and thus the hours spent awaiting his turn.  Followed, at the very least -assuming he is not immediately suspended for the remainder of the day or pending a hearing- by having to start over at the back of the queue.

5 Feb, 2010

Former Governor and Presidential candidate Howard Dean arrived home via BTV yesterday.

Apparently, the Governor’s ride didn’t show, so he ended up riding in one of the airports remaining rolling ashtray’s(the consensus is you can’t miss that smell).  Beside the fact we were surprised to hear the Governor didn’t exercise his choice of exiting the first taxi immediately, we’d be curious to know what he thought of the effectiveness of the smoking ban law that was ushered through during his administration?

We were surprised, as well as sorry, to hear citizen Dean has a significant limp.  Hopefully it is on the mend, rather than permanent!

As always, we here at BTV Taxi News subscribe to the premise that it’s the buyers responsibility to beware.  That said, as these sites came to our attention through a trusted source, we hope these links will help you save on your flight costs:

AirFareWatch.com

FareCompare.com

Please enlighten our readers with your experience.

4 Feb, 2010

Now this sounds like a blast!

Investor’s Business Daily reported Richard Branson’s Virgin Limited Addition firm has developed a new class of 3 person winged submarine that can fly down to depths of 36,000 feet using the downward lift of the wings rather than the traditional ballast method.

Should you have $25k for week’s use of a Necker Nymph, plus $88K for the accompanying luxury catamaran, we suspect, there’s some really unique fun awaiting you.

3 Feb., 2010

To all affected’s disappointment, AirTran Airways announced it will not -as anticipated- be returning to provide service to Burlington Int’l Airport in the spring of 2010.

This is more bad news for the airport on-demand queue taxi’s.  It’s already known 2009 BTV flight passenger traffic was down by 9% from 2008, which as would be expected, has incrementally adversely affected the Airports on-demand taxi ridership as well.  For the present, the loss of AirTran would seem to indicate another dip in ridership in 2010.

Additionally it has recently come to our attention that there are intentions at some future date to have a Greyhound station near the airport, which will likely be detrimental to both city and airport taxi ridership alike.

Combine that with another level being added to the airport parking garage, and the future of the queue permitted taxi franchisees is not bright.

Another detriment to the airport taxi’s income -that formerly seemed to be inflicted upon the whole by a few- increasingly comes to light in passenger comments.  For example, an O/O friend, recently engaged his passenger returning home from one of his regular business trips, in order to clarify the destination address for logistic purposes(i.e., to determine the most efficient route, involving the least number of traffic lights), which elicited the following quip:

“I’ve had cab drivers that were taking me home, who were coming to Burlington for the first time.”

If that doesn’t quite scan, apply a sarcasm filter with an eye on the fact that the passenger was referencing City of Burlington licensed  on-demand airport taxi’s.  If you require further extrapolation, please ask Dear Cabbie as there are passenger tales galore(perhaps we should have a contest).

In the flood of media information that has nothing to do with your life, perhaps you missed the news about the new Airline Passengers Bill of Rights the U.S. Congress has been taking the credit for.

Whatever your situation -whether you are a jaded frequent flyer or merely the occasional victim- you owe yourself to stop by FlyersRights.org to learn about all the new resources and options available to flyers.  The big splash being flyers must be allowed off an airliner after 3 hours of non flight … but there’s more.

Should you care to hear interviews with two of the heroines who provided sustained impetus for the enactment of the Airline Passengers Bill of Rights, simply follow the link option below you find most suitable.

Access the on demand archives or download the podcast. Either instance will require choosing Jan., 2010, followed by selecting hours 2 and/or 3, of the 19 Jan.(011910 +2 or 3, designating the program hour).

Both interviews require perhaps 90 minutes, the latter 30 minutes in hour 3 being devoted to Muslim issues as represented by a Muslim woman whose carry-0n containing multi-generational family jewelry disappeared while in airline custody.  Both ladies are well worth listening to, especially if you want to be inspired by a story of common people achieving uncommon results (which should benefit us all!!).

Montpelier – As of this Wednesday past, the Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles announced the names of a couple of fraudulent web sites intent on separating Vermont driver license holders from their cash.  In essence, a couple of fake sites were set up in order to collect credit card information of those wishing to renew their Vermont Drivers License online.

When you want to do business with our DMV utilizing the internet, accept no substitutes: www.dmv.state.vt.us.

For tips on information security, visit the Vermont Information Security Web site at itsecurity.vermont.gov.

We’re not going to bother with the names of the crooked sites, but we do tip our hat in thanks -first & foremost- to the observant citizen(s) who enlightened DMV of this scam; who thereafter spread the warning!

Add your thoughts, respective to the City of Burlington’s Taxi Zones and Fares.

Have you had a questionable transportation experience -whatever the mode- in our region*.  If so, HERE is your chance to alert your fellow traveler(s) so they might avoid shiftless or unethical Operators.  Please be specific.

* Burlington International Airport is a modest but regional transportation hub primarily serving north & central Vermont, the eastern Adirondack Park, the border area with Quebec including Montreal, etc.

Did we mention, we support economic boycott as a means of improving standards of service.  Which is the point of asking for specifics such as the driver & company name, the vehicle fleet number and/or license plate number, time & date, and supporting details of your experience; so others can be forewarned and spend their money elsewhere in support of responsive companies and/or Operators.  This is our effort, to help the buyer beware(Caveat Emptor), and the public’s participation is critical.

Questions?  Ask Dear Cabbie.