San Francisco Taxi Drivers Protest New Credit Card Fees
SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) --- Taxi cab drivers went to San Francisco City Hall Tuesday to complain about new fees they're being charged for credit card transactions.
The cabbies were at city hall to raise concerns with the Municipal Transportation Agency about new five percent fees they're being forced to pay each time a customer uses a credit card.
KCBS' Barbara Taylor Reports:
"We feel that's unfair because a typical credit card rate for a merchant is about two and a half percent, " one protestor said. "So we're paying double, and we're subsidizing other people's costs."
The fees will apparently go in part to install TV screens in cabs that allow customers to swipe their credit card. The TVs also broadcast advertisements that cabbies say annoy many riders. These taxi drivers say the new fees will potentially cost them hundreds of dollars a month in lost income at the same time other expenses, such as gas and insurance, are going up.
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