Some posts ago Dhobitalao Goan and US illegal alien Fred D’Souza explained to Goanet simply and from-the-heart his hard life and myriad woes as a medallion cab driver in New York City.
In this NY Times article, Jessica Loudis of Al Jazeera English (AJE) elaborates. For the past two weeks, more than a dozen taxi drivers have been on a hunger strike outside New York’s City Hall. The city’s cabbies are deep in debt because of rideshare competition. Nine indebted cab drivers have died by suicide, and many more are struggling with mental health issues. The city has offered a debt-relief proposal that many of the city’s 6,000 registered drivers say will have little effect. Augustine Tang, who owes $530,000 on his medallion, compared it to a “band-aid on a gunshot wound.” Hunger strikers have vowed to keep their vigil until the mayor offers a better deal. Here’s some background: Since 1937, New York City has regulated taxis through a medallion system that limits the number of yellow cabs that can be on the streets. Medallions have always been expensive, but they’ve historically been seen as a good long-term investment, particularly for immigrants who often have limited job options. Then, ride-sharing apps came along. Between 2014 and now, the value of a taxi medallion has plummeted from around $1 million to roughly $100,000, and in the process, saddled cabbies with an average of $600,000 in debt, according to the New York Taxi Workers Alliance (NYTWA). In response to the crisis, the city has earmarked $65 million to restructure debts, but critics say that the individual payouts on offer are not only too small, but that the program is helping the wrong people. The plan is "to give $65 million directly to the banks and hedge funds that own medallion debt in exchange for a negligible reduction in the principal owed on them," the NYTWA told Al Jazeera. While the ultimate decision is up to outgoing Mayor Bill de Blasio, the issue is gaining momentum among progressive politicians. In recent days, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) threw their weight behind a more progressive debt relief proposal championed by the Taxi Workers Alliance. With the city staggering out of the pandemic, New York’s leaders have been happy to sing the praises of essential workers. But, unlike a medallion, talk is cheap. Roland. Toronto.
