Possible strategy for taxis in PBLs

Hi all. Long-time reader, first-time poster, etc.

 

I've been reading with interest the discussions here and on Streetsblog about what to do when various drivers (private, commercial, city) park in PBLs. Some people have suggested, in the case of taxis, taking a photo and reporting it to the taxi company. That sounds good, but I had wondered whether the taxi company actually does anything about such reports.

 

Last night on Kinzie a taxi pulled into the PBL right in front of me in the westbound lane, just west of the RR underpass, to let out a passenger. I (politely, I hope) told him that he wasn't allowed to stop his taxi in the PBL, and he said, "What am I supposed to do? Stop in the middle of the street?" I said that I didn't know but he wasn't allowed to stop in the PBL.

 

Once it was clear that the driver was not going to move, I said I was going to take a photo of the taxi. As soon as I pulled out my phone he threw up his hands and said, "Okay, okay!" and immediately drove off with his customer still in the car.

 

So, my takeaway from this is that the threat of photographic evidence of traffic violation is something that taxi drivers take seriously, which leads me to believe that reports to taxi companies about such violations do have an impact.

 

I feel sympathetic to the driver's situation; I am sure that driving a taxi is a lonely job that requires long hours and it must be frustrating when there is not a proper place to drop off one's customer. But, I believe that I did the right thing here. If Chicago is to become a truly bicycle-centric city, the protected bike lanes must be clear so that the people who want to bike but are nervous about interacting with cars will have the confidence to begin doing so.

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Permalink Reply by Julie Aberman (Hochstadter) on March 26, 2013 at 7:07am

Interesting response from the taxi driver.  Sounds like there are actual implications and taxi drivers do know they aren't supposed to be in the bike lane but do it anyways. 

It is a good point that we should be empathetic of their needs too.  I for one take cabs a lot and appreciate their value.   

It's a drastic change taking place in our large American city....  

Permalink Reply by Julie Aberman (Hochstadter) on March 26, 2013 at 7:10am

Oh, and congrats on your first post!   Here is my first reply to a post, back on September 13, 2008. 

My first post about meeting up for the North Shore Century was on September 19, 2008.

Welcome to the community!

Permalink Reply by Lisa Curcio on March 26, 2013 at 7:37am

Nice!

Permalink Reply by daWillinChi on March 26, 2013 at 10:33am

Car drivers have had to deal with this issue since before people biked on roads shared with cars.

Let's say, yeah, that cab pulled over a bit down the road so that he didn't stop right in front of you. There's another cab behind him, that will pull over behind you as you pass, so he just lost a fare.

I think the thinking behind it is as long as they don't hit anything and other can swerve out of the way, they're going to continue on doing this.

The only possible solution is to have dedicated cab hailing locations, like bus stops.

It is frustrating, but you weren't the first, and certainly not going to be the last, either.

Permalink Reply by Michelle S on March 26, 2013 at 10:39am

I'm also very sympathetic to most cab drivers, for the reasons you mention. I think the issue of dropping off passengers when there's a PBL in place with bollards only is especially hard for cab drivers to deal with because it's drilled into them during training that they MUST drop passengers off on the curb, or they can and do get ticketed. So, when they see a curb, they pull up to the curb, PBL or not, because they think they're following the law. There will be less confusion on that issue if and when actual physical curbs are built up on Kinzie, on Dearborn, and on future PBLs. And yes, pulling out the phone to either take pictures and/or call 311 does light a fire under people who try to blow you off in these situations. Thanks for taking the time to clear the lane, and to post the issue.

Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on March 26, 2013 at 10:48am

...pulling out the phone to either take pictures and/or call 311 does light a fire under people who try to blow you off in these situations.

Absolutely.

1zt7hr8qm0y90Permalink Reply by 1zt7hr8qm0y90 on March 26, 2013 at 11:54am
I have noticed that cabs blocking bike lanes have had an unobstructed curb just ahead or behind them. What did they do before bike lanes, they blocked the street. Perhaps slapping a bike lane awareness sticker on the windshield blocking their view is the answer. However, complaining about garbage trucks, mail trucks, street sweepers and other utility vehicles or ambulances blocking a bike lane is unwarrented.
Permalink Reply by Lee Crandell on March 26, 2013 at 12:26pm

Nicely handled. It's always great to be sympathetic to other people and politely engage them first before "escalating" the issue to something that could get them fined or in other kinds of trouble. Best to avoid giving other people a bad day if avoidable and if they can learn from a friendly interaction instead.

I've blogged a bit more on this issue here too: http://www.activetrans.org/blog/lcrandell/cars-parking-bike-lane-wh...

Permalink Reply by David P. on March 26, 2013 at 12:36pm

Yesterday afternoon I found my way on EB Kinzie blocked by a USPS vehicle that was parked in the PBL, next to an entire block's worth of empty parking spaces. In situations like that, when a vehicle blocks a traffic lane when there is an obviously-available parking space, I'd say a complaint would be very warranted.

Douglas Iverson said:

I have noticed that cabs blocking bike lanes have had an unobstructed curb just ahead or behind them. What did they do before bike lanes, they blocked the street. Perhaps slapping a bike lane awareness sticker on the windshield blocking their view is the answer. However, complaining about garbage trucks, mail trucks, street sweepers and other utility vehicles or ambulances blocking a bike lane is unwarrented.
Permalink Reply by Mike Zumwalt on March 26, 2013 at 3:09pm

PBL shouldn't be put in single lane roads anyway it squeezes drivers, riders and parkers into narrow specified areas where they are supposed to belong without consideration to variables.

I'm all for PBL on 2-3 lane roads,Dearborn is sweet Kinzie has been a 3 year disaster.

A truly PBL will have no room for cars to enter it while leaving the cyclist with LESS maneuverability than riding in a striped lane.

Concrete barriers should be a minimum not  plastic that get's run over or removed because people looking out the window think it looks ugly.

Permalink Reply by Charlie Short 2.9 on March 27, 2013 at 1:46am

Taxi drivers are supposed to get trained for a week on all sorts of stuff. My understanding of the process is that that training has gotten less and less effective over the years. I work with the folks that regulate taxis and we're trying to make a video that lays all of this stuff out that every cab driver will see.

Cameron 7.5 mi said:

Given how many times I've seen a cab block a conventional bike lane instead of pulling to the curb, pulling to the curb can't be that drilled in. Does anyone know what kind of training, if any, if any cab drivers get on where to load and unload?

Michelle Stenzel said:

I'm also very sympathetic to most cab drivers, for the reasons you mention. I think the issue of dropping off passengers when there's a PBL in place with bollards only is especially hard for cab drivers to deal with because it's drilled into them during training that they MUST drop passengers off on the curb, or they can and do get ticketed. So, when they see a curb, they pull up to the curb, PBL or not, because they think they're following the law. There will be less confusion on that issue if and when actual physical curbs are built up on Kinzie, on Dearborn, and on future PBLs. And yes, pulling out the phone to either take pictures and/or call 311 does light a fire under people who try to blow you off in these situations. Thanks for taking the time to clear the lane, and to post the issue.

Permalink Reply by Julie Aberman (Hochstadter) on March 27, 2013 at 2:06am

awesome.

Charlie Short 11.5 said:

 I work with the folks that regulate taxis and we're trying to make a video that lays all of this stuff out that every cab driver will see.


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