Residents Support Longtime Village Taxi Service

Several residents are speaking out against the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's (MTA) plan to put the Nassau Blvd. taxi stand up for bids Feb. 27, some even pleading with the mayor to do "whatever possible" to save the jobs of the "hard-working, polite, trustworthy men" they've come to know over the years while being driven to medical appointments, business meetings and the airport.

The MTA recently published an RFP (Request For Proposal) seeking bids not less than $4,800 per year to use the small stand. According to village clerk Brian Ridgway, the taxi stand was built by the drivers themselves back in 1968 and because approximately one to two feet of the building was on MTA property the drivers - in agreement with the MTA - paid a yearly fee of $50 plus proof of insurance to the MTA.

"Recently the MTA published a RFP for this taxi stand requesting a quote not less then $4,800 per year," Ridgway said, opening up bidding to commercial cab companies like Ollie's and All-Island, whose owners both reside in the village. Both companies are also licensed in the village.

Mayor Don Brudie, at the Feb. 21 village board meeting, added his support of taxi drivers like Moses Green. "These people are trustworthy, honorable men," said Brudie, who also uses the taxi service. "To see their business taken away by large businesses like Ollie's isn't right."

Residents who use the service are calling on the mayor and board to stop the MTA's efforts.

"For many years, even decades, they have served their community faithfully," wrote a Cedar Place resident in a Jan. 28 emailed letter to the mayor. "Now their livelihoods are being threatened by large and anonymous businesses who will not necessarily have as much concern for the citizens of Garden City (many of whome are elderly)."

A Meadbrook Rd. resident agreed, stating in a Jan. 27 letter to the mayor and board that for decades village residents have relied on the limousine drivers from the Nassau Boulevard station to provide them with safe and reliable transportation. "History has proven this reliance is well deserved. Even the very vehicles they operate from Nassau Boulevard identify this village as a cut above the rest," she writes.

Ridgway said the MTA was not aware of the one to two feet on their property and have since "seemed to agree" that a fee of something more than $50 per year is fair. "I think once everything is complete both parties will be pleased and therefore no changes will be noticed at the Nassau Blvd. station," he said.