Young Progressives Proposal For Taxi Reform
The Young Progressives group has released a statement proposing ways to revitalize the taxi industry which includes having civil servants use taxis for transportation; giving cash incentives for slowing down to the speed limit verified by use of their GPS system; and prepaid taxi cards for seniors, nurses and disabled persons.
The statement suggested that all Government Permanent Secretaries “will be encouraged to leave their cars at home, reducing the availability of GP vehicles for their use and replacing cars with prepaid Government taxi credit cards.”
The full statement, which was signed by Gershwyn Smith, follows below:
Any reform in the taxi industry will be focused to economically empower Bermudians and we will find specific programs to rebuild the industry. The time has now arisen to create new opportunity for economic stimulus in the Taxi Transportation industry and to assist in its rehabilitation.
We urge the new leadership to immediately implement new and innovative environmentally and sustainable transportation programs starting with the taxi industry.
All Government Permanent Secretaries, will be encouraged to leave their cars at home, reducing the availability of GP vehicles for their use and replacing cars with prepaid Government taxi credit cards.
We believe an agreement can be reached with the taxi cab industry representatives and the transport control department which will allow Government employees during working hours and on government business to use taxi for transportation during the day on a prepaid basis.
We recommend:
- A Taxi senior prepaid card which will be issued as a coupon upon request for Future Care clients who will be issued the card with a 100% subsidy $10 card. A prepaid $50 card will be additionally be available to seniors for $25.00
- Retired Clergy and nurses and disabled persons will be eligible for a 100% subsidized prepaid $50 taxi card for use on compassionate transportation.
- Taxi cabs using green and ecofriendly vehicles will be eligible for a 5% reduction of tax on their fuel purchases.
- Taxi cabs using the GPS devises will be given an economic and cash incentive for slowing down to the speed limit verified by use of their GPS system.
- Enhanced tax service award programs will be launched with travel rewards for winning drivers and owners.
- Selected and eligible taxies (rewards based upon obeying the speed limit and good driving) will be paid a flat waiting fee of $20 at the airport during unpopular hours and times when there are no taxies available.
- There will be an improved voluntary driver security and safety program developed including more police taxi protection and a neighborhood watch taxi program established.
We support our previous ideas for the establishment of taxi empowerment committee which will suggest new programs to be reviewed and proposed by a 5 person taxi empowerment committee reporting to the Minister of Transport.
Update 10.34pm: To clarify, although there are similarities in the names the Young Progressives are not affiliated with the Progressive Labour Party [PLP].
Co0sign
No cosign here!! Every industry is facing redundancies and cut backs. Of course the taxi industry is going to feel the pinch – less people living here, a lot less visiting. So what if we have a few less taxi’s on the road polluting our island? Fewer big cars on the road is good for Bermuda. The restaurant industry is facing job loss too…the taxi industry should face loss as well. Why protect one industry and not another? Fewer big cars is not a bad thing… Yes, I feel for the taxi drivers that may lose their jobs but they are not alone. Wake up, smell the exhaust, this is the new reality, the new economy. Deal with it like everyone else.
Regarding the GP vehicles…those vehicles should be IMPOUNDED and the drivers should be forced to RIDE THE DAMNED BUSES THAT THEY LOVE SO MUCH!!!!!
Wait, let me get this straight. Taxi drivers will be rewarded by a cash incentive, paid by me a taxpayer, for obeying the law? How stupid can the PLP get?
I want to claim my cash award for not speeding; for not littering; for not running a red light; for not parking illegally; for not doing drugs; and for every other law I haven’t broken. Of course not breaking the law is new to the PLP so I guess I can see where this is coming from.
hahahahahahahaha this is from the same guy that said earlier classify weed as food hahahahahahahaha. I think that he has been eating to much of his own food.
Just to clarify, the statement wasn’t issued by the PLP, but by the Young Progressives. Similiar name, but separate entities.
Who are the young progressives? If they have nothing to do with the PLP (which of course is fine), why is the PLP not making some sort of statement to clarify the position? If these guys are completely different/independent from the PLP then the PLP should ask that they amend their name since most people will associate such a name with the PLP. Now, I applaud the young progressives for coming forward and offering options. They have shown thus far that they are a group that is not about bringing people down, but about contributing to debate and offering suggestions. That all said, if the young progressives start suggesting options that are wildly different from PLP positions, then that will start confusing people.
My mistake in the apparent link between the two and agree with what “Please clarify says” below.
Lets see…I have had something like 25 years of offence free driving. What do I get?
Never happen. The taxi drivers will whine & object to these proposals, whether the ideas are lame or not. They whine & object to everything. They are their own worst enemys.
are the young progressives the “youth wing” of the PLP, or is that MINDS? or are they both?
No, not the Youth Wing – completely separate entities, Young Progressives is not part of the PLP whatsoever.
MINDS is the radio ralk show, which is affliated with the PLP Youth Wing/Youth Groups. http://www.facebook.com/pages/MINDS-Talk-Radio/167206726629829?v=info
YOU NOW THAT WILL NOT HAPPEN NO WAY YOU ARE DREAMERS!!!
hey spanny, posting in caps means you’re shouting. bie, you better calm down if you want to be mayor
passports for dogs!
*Taxi cabs using the GPS devices will be given an economic and cash incentive for slowing down to the speed limit verified by use of their GPS system.*
Sounds to me as if the once mandatory and despised GPS system will be made ‘optional’ by our new taxi authority thus winning back the support of a mostly PLP support group.
Gotta get them voters squarely back on our side !
Are these people loosing their mind! Let’s reward the taxi drivers for doing what they should be doing! What’s next give drug dealers credit for not selling drugs. We need to stop this bull..I’m getting tired of these lame responses to fixing Bermudas social issues! This is by far the dumbest thing I’ve hear all year.
how about Mr. Furburt getting them all free bus passes….
sounds a bit confusing! Might take care of the taxis(?) but long term what do we do with the GP cars open a second hand car agency or leave them to sit up and rot.
OK everyone, they are not the PLP Youth Wing. Look at that statement. A part of it refers to rewarding drivers to drive the limit. Fair enough, set that aside. But some of the other stuff makes sense, so see it as well. As always, we kill the messenger without even looking at the message. Cars for the CS cost 100,000s annually I am sure, and perhaps using taxis is a way to claw back on the cash outflow.
I credit the YP with coming up with this suggest. Any suggestions at this time should be properly looked at.
Gosh, you whine when the youth are out practising foolishness, you whine when they try to contribute, I mean come on people! Give them some positive feedback for crying out loud!
The problems with the taxi industry are mainly lack of visitors who use the taxis during the day and the stubbornness of some of the older drives who use their taxis like a private car. When the economy was good there was no need to subsidize the taxi industry, they were making a killing. They made money during the day and many did not work at night nor did they allow for a second driver to cover the evening shift, hence no taxis at night. Now that the economy is bad, I see dozens of taxis sitting in taxi stands all day not making any money. And if there isn’t any money to be made during the day then their is definitely none to be made at night.
Get the visitors back, get cruise ships stationed in the city and get the people working and the taxi industry will survive on its own. My only issue is still the second driver for evenings…that’s where the incentive is mostly needed.
well if you want to get business for taxis at night make drunk driving offenses $10,000 and 6 months in jail…..people would then be taking taxis to and from town…..hundreds of extra fares all of a sudden….
Unfortunately their fix is to go after bartenders who will now in JUNE have to start counting drinks customers have and it is a $10,000 fine for serving a drunk person….great if you work in a busy bar trying to keep a track of 100′s of people….but thats another bitch session..
Bernews, may I suggest that you do a report on the Young Progressives and what they are all about? I only heard of them a month back when they made a comment about reclassifying marijuana as a food (I’m all for decriminalisation, but food?), and it wasn’t clear to me where they sprung up from. I was particularly curious why a group with such a name had someone who appears to be at least 50+ represent them as a spokesperson…
Apologies if you’ve already done so.
We asked them for some info, so hope to be able to post that soon….
This is what we posted:
The group, which although it bears a similar name is not a branch of the PLP, is a grass roots and community based movement. Members of the group include Gershwyn ‘High Priest Shiloh’ Smith and Cleveland Simmons, with businessman Michael A. Markham acting as an advisor. Mr Markham said the group emerged initially in the 1960s and previously worked on music and community development programs and “recently in light of extreme stress in the community and the destruction of community by the drug gangs and gun violence that the group felt it needed to speak out and present to its proposed solutions to the countries problems.”
I don’t see why ‘retired clergy’ should recieve a taxi card.
I think the ‘eco-taxis’ should be rewarded more than just a 5% reduction, although it should be directly correlated with the greenhouse gas (GHG) savings attributable to the vehicle.
I would question whether it would be more economically efficient to make PS’s use taxis. If anything they (and other civil servants) should be using the bus service. For one thing, they may get ideas how to improve the system that way… (which, in fairness, is actually pretty decent).
PLP being nice to the taxi drivers… Does that smell like an election is coming to anyone else???
The name ‘Young Progressives’ implies these suggestions come from a number of youthful people.
‘Mixitup’ says we should be pleased that the youth are making suggestions. The problem here, mixitup, is that Gershwyn Smith is 61 years old. He is old enough to know better than to make ridiculous suggestions.
There is not one suggestion made here that deserves any credit. They are all completely absurd.
Taxis, like everyone else, need to operate efficiently if they are to make money in the current climate. Government subsidies for free taxi rides for select groups will not make the taxi industry more efficient.
WHAT?!?! Are you kidding. Pay the people who have UN-NECCESSARY GP CARS to catch a taxi and I’m going to pay for it?!?! And pay the taxis?? I already paid for the damn cars they are driving!!! Which is beyond me! There is no need for anyone other the the premuim to have a GP car!! The last I counted there was GP 143. That means by my count, that there are at least 143 of them on the road now. THIS IS INSANE……since when did part of your job in Bermuda (a one car per household law) start handing out cars as perks! And governement wants to gives us lip service about congested roads and catching the bus??? AM I the only one who sees somethng terribly wrong? I guess i must be pretty damn stupid that i can’t make sense of any of this….. And now this group is suggesting this. Don’t you realise you already paid for these cars and you are suggesting something that will make you pay even more?