LAS VEGAS (AP) - With reports showing taxi ridership dropping, Nevada state regulators are set to try again to curb Las Vegas-area cab drivers from taking longer-than-needed routes to run up high fares.
The Nevada Taxicab Authority is expected next month to update rules after an audit last year found taxi passengers paid some $47 million in fare and fee overcharges - a practice called long-hauling.
“The issue has gone on way too long,” Stan Olsen, the chairman of the five-member board, told the Las Vegas Review-Journal (https://bit.ly/2lNrsDR ).
Taxi drivers are required to take the shortest route, and let passengers approve of alternate courses.
Long-hauling violators can be fined up to $100 for a first offense and have their taxi licenses suspended or revoked for repeat offenses.
Monthly figures released Thursday showed that ridership and revenue continue to drop for the 16 certified southern Nevada tax companies.
The companies reported a combined 1.8 million trips in January, down 10.7 percent compared with the same month a year ago. Combined revenues were $30 million for the month, a decrease of 11.1 percent from January 2016.
The number of taxi licenses in the Las Vegas area increased by about a third in 2016, but they reported 12 percent fewer trips for the year and a 13 percent decrease in overall revenues.
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Information from: Las Vegas Review-Journal, https://www.lvrj.com
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