SANTA MONICA—The Santa Monica City Council is considering new action on taxicab regulations. During the February 10 meeting of the council, the Regulation of Taxicab Operations "proposed [the] establishment of a franchise-based system for the regulation of taxicab operations" around Santa Monica. The official summary describes the proposed course of action as an answer to the "current open-entry taxicab permitting system," which the proposal describes as inadequate to handle the reduction of vehicle emission, the setting of "uniform fares," and the setting of "operating standards." The proposal states that future action would be taken on behalf of not only the city and the "business community" but also on the behalf of taxicab drivers.


The legislation would "limit the number of taxicab companies to between four and eight," providing a total of 250 vehicles in the "taxicab fleet" of Santa Monica. Currently, the city gives permits to qualified taxi drivers, though, if approved, a new ordinance would give the city the power to award franchises rather than individual permits, which would be designed to make the taxi system more exclusive, ostensibly more readily accessible to taxis following certain new emissions and fare standards. Another asked-for regulation would include discounted fares for the elderly and the disabled around Santa Monica. Also noted is that there is currently "no legal limitation on the amount of franchise fees that the City may impose for the exclusive/limited privilege of operating a taxicab business on public city streets." It is expected by the city's Acting Revenue Manager, Pamela McGarvey, that the costs of starting a franchise system "can be recovered" through the "franchise, permit and inspection fees paid by the taxicab companies and drivers." The Santa Monica Police Department's Traffic Division was suggested as the administrator of choice for the proposed franchise system.

The proposed action appears to have been born of a 2006 ordinance from the Task Force on the Environment, which offered to "award franchises only to taxi companies whose fleets met specific emission and mileage standards." This proposal would establish a "franchise-based system for the regulation of taxicab operations" around Santa Monica.The official summary describes the proposed course of action as an answer to the "current open-entry taxicab permitting system," which the proposal describes as inadequate to handle the reduction of vehicle emission, the setting of "uniform fares," and the setting of "operating standards." The proposal states that future action would be taken on behalf of not only the city and the "business community," but also on the behalf of taxicab drivers.

The proposed legislation would "limit the number of taxicab companies to between four and eight companies," providing a total of 250 vehicles in the "taxicab fleet" of Santa Monica. In this proposal, the city was advised to "establish a taxi franchise system which uses a competitive Request for Proposals (RFP) process to award franchises."

The idea was again floated in December 2008, as the taxi "issue" has continued to generate interest in the city chambers.

Also on the Santa Monica City Council's agenda was a plan to expand the Blue bus system of Santa Monica. The taxicab ordinance was planned to be discussed during the open hearing portion of the council's meeting, at which time the discussion was to begin on the issues of the "adoption of an ordinance... establishing a moratorium on the issuance of taxicab business licenses and police permits as provided under Chapter 6.48 of the Santa Monica Municipal Code and declaring the presence of an emergency."

If the Santa Monica City Council gets its druthers, it may become a bit more challenging for new taxi services to service the Santa Monica area. On a quick browse, it is easy to find many taxi services which serve the Santa Monica area. Some of these include Excalibur Taxi Service, Express Taxi Service, Silver Mercedes Tax Service, Lotus Taxi and Santa Monica Taxi, just to name a few.

Santa Monica is a popular destination for travelers, as the climate is temperate and the beachside town has been a longtime haven to many. Santa Monica, with its proximity to the major entertainment spots of Los Angeles, is also well-known for the Santa Monica Pier (currently celebrating its 100th anniversary), its proximity to UCLA and the Third Street Promenade.