By Doug Miller
With Democrat Denise Tangney and Republican Jim Hennessy absent, the council voted on whether to raise the city's taxi rates by $1 per zone, and to add a temporary 50-cent fuel surcharge to each ride. Both measures received yes votes from Democrats Robert Tepper and Council President Leonard Remo, and a no vote from Republican minority Councilman Tom Sofield. Sofield had previously moved to table both actions, but was unsuccessful.
City Manager John Laffey said Wednesday that he would not immediately bring the measures back before the council in two weeks, but instead would wait for the city to impanel a taxi board -- which is mandated in the city charter but is currently vacant - to study several facets of the taxi industry in Long Beach.
Sofield protested that while the fuel surcharge would benefit the taxi drivers, they still must buy gas out of their own pockets at one designated retail station. In addition, several city officials stated privately that they were concerned that the industry was allowed to operate as a monopoly, with John Marsala owning both taxi companies in town and facing no real competition.
Upon hearing the vote, Marsala shook his head. "I'm thrilled to death for these people," he said, referring to the council. "They don't consider that I created the senior citizen discount rate in Long Beach. I'm the one who started driving people home for free so they wouldn't drive drunk. I take senior citizens to vote for free - Democrats and Republicans."
Sofield and Hennessy had petitioned Laffey to attach 11 conditions to the fare hikes, such as increased mandatory insurance and drug testing for drivers. Laffey said that many of the conditions were already in place, some involved Constitutional issues and the rest were not within his authority.
