City tweaking rules while residents find other rides

As Westbrook residents make arrangements to get around without a taxi service, the city is working on changing its ordinance to clarify how Westbrook Taxi – and any other cab company – can operate in the city.

Since the city’s Municipal Officers denied relicensing Westbrook Taxi, the city’s only cab company, last week, City Clerk Lynda Adams has been working on a new version of the taxi ordinance. It would not allow cabs that aren’t licensed in Westbrook to be “hanging around in the city and picking up unscheduled fares,” said Adams.

Westbrook Taxi cabs can still be seen around town, but the business owner, Norma Bridges, said they are only making runs between Westbrook and Portland, which is allowed under the ordinance.

Meanwhile, Adams said, several people have inquired about applying to start a new taxi service in Westbrook – which is good news for the residents who rely on it to get around.

Currently, cab companies in nearby communities can pick up customers in Westbrook and bring them to a destination outside the city limits, but they cannot legally bring them to another Westbrook destination without a Westbrook license.

For residents without cars, that means making other plans.

Renee Berry-Huffman, who uses a wheelchair, said she’s relied on Westbrook Taxi for getting to everything from the grocery store to the doctor’s office since she moved to the city a year ago.

For the past week, Berry-Huffman has used Regional Transportation Program, or RTP, a private, nonprofit, United Way agency that provides publicly funded, low-cost transportation to people in Cumberland County. Though she said its a good service, she has to plan ahead of time in order to get a ride now.

“The spontaneity is gone,” she said. “You don’t have that individualized service.”

Another service, specifically for seniors, is Independent Transportation Network, based in the Dana Warp Mill.

Though RTP and ITN are solutions for some, others without their own vehicles, like Christine Hanson, have to rely on friends for a ride.

Hanson, who used Westbrook Taxi about once a week, said she was able to get a ride to the grocery store this week, but doesn’t know if she’ll always be able to if the city is without a cab company much longer.

“It’s going to make it tough,” she said, especially on Sundays, when the bus routes are limited.

Mayor Bruce Chuluda said he hasn’t received many calls from residents complaining about the lack of taxi service. He said he is working on making arrangements with the city of Portland to see if its cab companies could help fill the void left in Westbrook.

“There is a need,” Chuluda said Tuesday. “We are working to try to resolve the issue and get taxi service back in the city.”

One factor Chuluda said he will be taking into consideration when meeting with Portland officials is what that city’s standards are for issuing licenses, especially considering that there were drivers for Westbrook Taxi who were denied licenses in Westbrook but got them in Portland.

The fact that drivers without Westbrook licenses were picking up and dropping off customers in the city was one of the reasons the police recommended denying Westbrook Taxi’s license.

Westbrook Police Capt. Tom Roth said last week that it seemed as though it was easier to get a license in Portland, considering the applicants who were denied in Westbrook but approved in Portland.

Though Adams said there will be a process the city has to go through before the new ordinance, which is modeled after Portland’s, is put in place, she said two drivers from Westbrook Taxi, Larry Jalbert and Edward Dame, have already taken out applications to start their own cab companies in the city.

Gorham Taxi was approved for a Westbrook license in May, but went out of business within weeks.

The next City Council meeting isn’t scheduled until Aug. 4, but, Adams said, if the wording for the taxi ordinance is prepared before then, the city may hold a special meeting in order to get the process moving forward.

Chuluda said he stands behind his vote to deny Westbrook Taxi’s license last week, even though it has temporarily taken away a service from the citizens and he doesn’t know how long it will be before they get it back.

“All good things take time,” he said.

A CLOSER LOOK

Transportation alternatives to taxis in Westbrook include:

Regional Transportation System, or RTP, a private, nonprofit, United Way agency that provides publicly funded, low-cost transportation to people in Cumberland County. To contact, call 774-2666. For more information, visit www.rtprides.org.

Independent Transportation Network, or ITN, provides rides with door-to-door, arm-through-arm service to seniors and is based in Westbrook’s Dana Warp Mill. To contact, call 854-9001. For more information, visit www.itnamerica.org.

Taxi stand