Here is a document about Portland taxicab problems

THE TAXICAB INDUSTRY IN "CRISIS"
An Overview of taxicab regulations in Portland, Oregon
By: Sean F. Ghassemi, President PMDA
There is a "crisis" in the taxicab industry in Portland. This crisis was not created overnight. It is an ongoing process that has been ignored for a long time by the authorities and people in charge of this industry. When, almost ten years ago, Broadway Cab Company, the largest and the oldest cab company in town filed for bankruptcy and caused all it's drivers to lose their lifetime investments. Nobody in the City of Portland paid any attention. That, itself, was enough to City officials to raise the red flag and question the management style of Broadway Cab. But, they didn't. All they did was to allow a single company, "Trax" (owned by Broadway Cab) to jump in and acquire Broadway Cab Company in its entireties. Whatever connection and 'behind closed doors' activity caused that, is history today. But, that itself was a starting point in igniting the early flames of anger, frustration of so many drivers who lost all their stocks and investments. A majority of long-term drivers were either fired by the new management or quit in exasperation, or had to "shut-up" in reaction to the tyrannical management style with an iron fist to avoid retaliation which resulted in "termination of lease contracts" or simply said, to be terminated from driving.
The changes to Portland Taxicab regulations in 1998 and City's apparent willingness to allow two new taxicab companies to enter the market unfortunately did not address more structural problems within the industry. The structural problems and City's "hands-off" policy in monitoring the cab companies and reluctance to address the real issues, lack of enforcement of rules and regulation, has turned the taxicab industry into a real "crisis".
Taxicabs are an integral part of a city's image. Taxicab industry by far, with a good administration, has the potential to be a key part of the urban transportation system. A well-functioning taxi system also is a valuable resource for visitors, business people, the community at large, the elderly, and the disabled. Taxi system increases the mobility of the population, taxis can offer a viable alternative to the private automobile and a supplement to the public transit system. A good administered and functional taxi system in any city and its use can contribute to economic development and quality of life.
The purpose section of the taxicab regulations of the city of Portland (16.40.001) clearly indicated that: "The purpose of this chapter is to provide for safe, fair, and efficient operation of taxicab. The taxicab industry should be allowed to operate without unnecessary restraint. However, taxicabs constitutes an essential part of the City's transportation system and because transportation so fundamentally effects the City's well-being and that of its citizens, some restriction is necessary to ensure that public safety is protected, the public need provided and the public convenience promoted. It is not the purpose of this chapter to displace competition with regulation of a monopoly public service." On the contrary, the business conduct and performance of the taxicab companies and the overall City regulations and conduct of City authorities toward this purpose does not support the goal of the regulation.
City of Portland has created highly concentrated industry with no incentive or opportunity to compete. Ordinance 16.40.215.d.2 is to ensure that only companies serious about providing quantitative and qualitative services to consumer can obtain permits or maintain the permits they have. In reality, the City and taxicab regulations, along with lack of monitoring and enforcement have created the problems that give rise to more and more regulations, without any solution offered. Because of extra regulations that resulted in monopoly public service, cost of driving taxicab is on the rise. The major cost to the drivers, which in turn impacts the total cost of taxi rides to the public and the taxpayer. (Taxi companies contracting with public school systems and Tri-Met for Tri-Met Lift system.), includes the "kitty". The "kitty" or the weekly fee in fact is the price of monopoly permit that drivers pay to the companies. These monopolies are created by the taxi regulation that are being imposed upon the total cost of taxi rider-ship. The cost of driving a taxicab includes "kitty", add to that cost of gasoline, which the driver must purchase and if the driver owns his/her vehicle, add to that the cost of maintenance and repair of the vehicle. By adding al these, one finds that a driver faces a daily $120.00 deficit before leaving the company parking lot to begin a work shift.
All of these are provided as a platform by the city regulations, to the taxicab companies to freely abuse the system and take full advantage of the drivers. Due to these vague and inconsistent regulations in the major part of the taxicab industry, a taxi company is not longer in the business of being a taxicab and transporting the public. Instead, it is a "leasing company" in the business not to serve the public, rather to "leases" or to "sell spots", the monopoly permits to the drivers. A licensed driver is no longer an employee, working for the cab company, instead a "self-employed lessee" or "independent contractor". A work contract is now a "lease agreement". When a driver is discharged from work, he or she is not fired, rather his or her "driver's agreement" is terminated.
Under the brand of "independent contractor" or "self-employed lessee", drivers are not entitled to unionize (for their own protection against this type of company abuse) or to obtain any statutory employee benefits such as: contribution by employers into the social security fund, payment of unemployment insurance, disability, worker's compensation, let alone any retirement or health benefits. City of Portland requires the cab drivers to obtain a business license for a business they don't own or operate and ironically the business name indicate "Taxicab Driver".
The city officials (Bureau of Licensing which oversees the taxi industry) is in the assumption that these serious companies will not risk their permits by operating their services in a manner contrary to the public interest. City of Portland treats these permits to the companies as a type of a contract, between the companies and the city. By managing supply through the companies rather than issuing permits to individuals [with business licenses], the city is avoiding micro-managing and fragmenting of the taxi industry.
This makes it easier and less expansive to administer the taxi industry. In other words, this mess is called a lazy municipal bureaucracy. In reality, the prohibition of independent operators not only decreased the economic efficiency, it has declined customer service. In this system, drivers have no rights and nobody cares. City only recognizes the companies as legitimate owners of the cabs and have all the rights.
In most cities here in the United States, drivers own their permit for the taxicabs they drive. The taxicabs are being treated as an entity. The cab drivers are truly business people which should have a business license for their business as cab owner, not a cab driver. For driving a taxicab, there are rigid tests that must meet before anyone can obtain a license to operate a vehicle for hire. In Portland, cab companies hire anyone who has a "good driving record", and this is because their insurance company requires that, otherwise that wouldn't even be an issue. The drivers hired enter to driving unable to deal with increasingly higher "kitty", they have to pay every week. They quit before they learn how to be professional cabbies. In comparison, turnover at Radio Cab where a large number of drivers also owners, is approximately 10% to 20% per year, compared to 80% at Broadway Cab where all licenses are owned by the company. Taxicab operations for drivers have become like revolving door. Drivers enter the trade with little or no training or requirements and no knowledge of routes to various destinations. They exit due to high cost of "kitty" without taking the profession seriously.
This is hurting the customers. If the purpose of taxicab regulation was to create a safe, fair and efficient operation of taxicab industry in city of Portland, instead the action of these companies which were supposed to provide service to customers and the public at large have become monopoly "car leasing" and money grabbing companies. If the purpose of taxicab regulation were to promote innovation and adaptation to changing needs and… allow competing. Lack of effective competition and inconsistency of the number of permits amongst the companies have created shortage of certain type of services and have stifled innovation. Except Radio Cab, none of the existing cab companies have any motivation to invest in advertising and customer service [and marketing], let alone innovations. As a result, they have reduced the industry employment, created sweatshop conditions of work for the drivers.
In the driver agreement to lease a vehicle (to be able to work for a company), or "the taxicab lease agreement", there are paragraphs in artificial legal language devoted to a denial that an employee-employer relationship between the cab companies and the drivers exist, this accompanied by a declaration that the person signing the "agreement" is not entitled to any statutory employee benefits and will not ask for them. Furthermore, in the "lease agreement", the driver is assigned to work a shift, ordered to follow certain rules and regulations of the "leasing company", and committed to follow a variety of company policies. Surprisingly, no policy books ever exist and most of the policies are spontaneous.
If one asks why work relationship and conditions are contained in a contract that is suppose to be nothing more than a lease (the term that should essentially deal with rental period and price). The answer is that the "lease agreement is unmitigated fraud, a cover to disguise the true status of the employed driver forced to sign it as a condition of work, backed by the city rules and regulations.
While the City of Portland practicing easier and less expansive method of administering the taxicab system, these companies by paying only a minimal amount of $100.00 per number of permits annually are cashing in millions of dollars in net profit. While the drivers are making $6.00 to 11.50 per hour, according to the Oregon Employment Department, and working long hours of 16-18 hours a day, these companies at the mercy of the City regulations and their buddies in the city Hal are looking for ways to maximize profit at any cost, but cutting services to the public and cutting the drivers share of the market [stealing from drivers].
The situation will change if there were only one category of cab drivers: INDEPENDENT PERMIT OWNER DRIVER. Driver who own their cabs and permits tend to keep them in good shape, take care of business in the city, cultivate passengers by treating them with politeness and adopt the trade at their life's work. [getting personals]. Freed from pressure of high cost of paying for monopoly permits system of cab companies, called "kitty", drivers do not feel compelled to work long hours of 16-18 hours, which creates danger to the drivers, their passengers and the community [other drivers], and they avoid accidents.
In order to address the problems and the crisis created in the taxicab industry, the City of Portland needs to act decisively [and immediate]. The current taxicab Board of Review is out of touch with realities and difficulties of the taxicab industry in Portland. The current crisis needs to be addressed through an unbiased Task Force. The Task Force's goal should be to increase the level of overall service to the community and to improve working conditions for drivers. Through a process of debate, this Task Force can develop many well-reasoned recommendations to these crisis.


Really Helpful Internet Taxi Links

http://www.taxi-l.org -- Comprehensive site on taxis, taxi safety, Independent Contractor info, and much more.

http://clubs.yahoo.com/clubs/taxidriversofamerica -- Yahoo interactive club where you can post messages regarding taxi issues

http://www.taxicab.co.uk -- United Kingdom Taxi Site which links you to taxi sites in countries other than US

http://209.86.243.205/page1.html -- Atlanta Georgia Website -- Welcome to Atlanta's best driving resource. It is a collection of the finest drivers who offer their driving services and also a collection of resources useful to anyone who drives in the Atlanta area. We are constantly updating the site and encourage your input and feedback. Since 1997 we have searched hundreds of thousands of webpages and bookmarked 550+ of the best links which make up this website.

http://www.taxicabusa.com -- Part of CoachUSA site. 18 states have taxicabusa service.

http://www.licenses.ci.portland.or.us/Regulatory/Taxi/taxi.htm -- For taxi regulations in Portland

http://195.92.250.96/pco/taxi4.htm -- London Taxi Website

http://www.portofportland.com -- In case you need something from the Port of Portland, here is their site.

http://www.linkupalaska.com/usa -- Lots of governmental information on all states in US

http://www.sfgov.org/taxicommission/agendas.htm -- San Francisco's Taxicab Commission Agendas

http://www.cityofseattle.net/finance/consumer/fstaxi.htm -- Start here for Seattle's taxicab inspection program. Search "taxicab" for more taxi information in Seattle, WA.

http://www.taxidriversafety.org -- taxi site on safety in US.

http://www.taxi-l.org/portland01.htm -- Check out this 1998 paper: "An Economic Analysis of
Taxicab Regulation in Portland, Oregon"