HAIL A CAB IN L.A.? MAYBE IT WILL GET EASY SOME CALL FOR CHANGE IN TOUGH LOCAL RULES THAT DISCOURAGE PRACTICE IN CITY NOW.Byline: KERRY CAVANAUGH Staff Writer Call it the ``Manhattanization'' of Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. . Hoping to replicate big-city hustle and bustle in downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles is the central business district of Los Angeles, California, located close to the geographic center of the metropolitan area. The sprawling, multi-centered megacity is such that its downtown core is often considered just another district like Hollywood or , business leaders and taxi companies are trying to persuade city transportation officials to relax no-stopping zones so Angelenos can hail passing cabs. If it works, urbanists hope to spread it beyond downtown to allow cabs to be flagged along Ventura Boulevard Ventura Boulevard is one of the primary east-west thouroughfares in the San Fernando Valley; as it was originally a part of the El Camino Real (the trail between Spanish missions), Ventura Boulevard is the oldest route in the San Fernando Valley. It was also U.S. , Westwood Boulevard Westwood Boulevard is a street in Los Angeles that runs through the heart of Westwood Village and further south in West Los Angeles. Westwood Blvd begins south of Sunset Boulevard in the campus of UCLA as Westwood Plaza. and other night-life hot spots hot spots acute moist dermatitis. . ``Imagine that you could literally put your hand out, just like in any major city, and hail a cab,'' said Hal Bastian, vice president and director of economic development for the Downtown Center Improvement District. ``We're the only city in America that doesn't do it. We've just got to change the culture.'' But Bastian and allies first have to convince the city's traffic engineers that the rules can be safely bent. Cab customers can hail a taxi now. But drivers are limited in where they can stop to pick up and drop off customers. There are designated taxi zones and the occasional open parking space. Otherwise cab drivers face a $65 ticket if they stop at red curbs for customers. And enforcement is strict. As a result, cab drivers don't want to cruise for customers -- especially with gasoline prices around $3.30 a gallon -- and they tend to congregate in taxi-loading zones in front of hotels, said Kia Tehrany, director of operations for Los Angeles Yellow Cab
``People don't see taxis. If they are sure they can get a cab and pay a few dollars, they'll take it.'' Taxi companies and the Downtown Center Improvement District want city Department of Transportation officers to refrain from ticketing cabs if they briefly stop to pick up or drop off riders in no-stopping red zones. DOT Assistant General Manager John Fisher
Saint John Fisher also John Cardinal Fisher (c. 1469 – 1535), was an English Catholic bishop, cardinal and martyr. said the department is looking at ways to allow more cab stops around downtown, but not in the red zones. ``That's against the law. I certainly think (the proposal) is well-intentioned, but let's not Let's Not is a science fiction short story by Isaac Asimov. It was first published in Boston University Graduate Journal in December 1954. It was written for no payment as a favour to the journal, and later appeared in the collection Buy Jupiter. go breaking the law. There's a win-win out there.'' So, if DOT and taxi companies reach an agreement, will Angelenos forgo their love of the driver's seat driv·er's seat n. A position of control or authority. for a back seat? Cabbies and potential customers said maybe. ``If it's like a New York-style system, yes, that could work,'' said Ali Karimi, 55, a taxi company supervisor and driver for 25 years. ``Los Angeles is not yet like New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of . It's better than it was 10 years ago, but we don't have enough night life in downtown.'' Glendale resident and downtown worker Lois Yoon, 28, was a little skeptical as well. ``I never even think of taking a taxi now; Los Angeles is such a driving community. It could take off, but it will take awhile.'' Analyst DeeDee Brown was waiting for a DASH bus downtown on her lunch break last week when she pondered the potential for taxis. ``Every other city does it. Why are we so far behind? I don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. if I'd take cabs any more often, but it would be easier if I did,'' she mused. Darrell Alatorre owns Mama Juana's nightclub on Cahuenga Boulevard in Studio City, and many of his customers already use taxicabs. But with parking limited and drinking and driving always a concern, he thinks there's a demand for more. ``I think it would work. Definitely the younger generation, they're more than aware of the expense of a DUI. I'd like to see more of it.'' kerry.cavanaugh(at)dailynews.com (213) 978-0390 CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1 -- color) Hailing a cab after attending the theater can be frustrating in L.A. A taxi driver can legally stop only in a designated zone. Photo illustration (2) Checker Cab drivers Moges Hiale, left, and Mekonnen Feleke stand waiting for fares in a taxi zone near the Omni Los Angeles Hotel at California Plaza in downtown Los Angeles. Gus Ruelas/Associated Press |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion