| Ruling halts Salt Lake City's effort to set up new cab service A 3rd District judge on Thursday ruled that officials at Salt Lake City International Airport awarded contracts to two out-of-state taxi companies without giving local firms a chance to protest the bidding process. The city's "failure to permit the cab companies the full and meaningful opportunity to exhaust their administrative remedies as alleged may constitute a deprivation of due process," she wrote in a 30-page decision. Toomey agreed. Council Chairman Soren Simonsen said Thursday he is concerned that officials excluded ground transportation professionals when drafting ordinances that alter how cab companies do business. Toomey, who approved a temporary injunction in November, issued a preliminary injunction Thursday halting new services until the case is resolved in court. But it isn't good policy to exclude people in the industry we're trying to regulate. The plaintiffs claimed the city had violated its promises that no contracts would be awarded until after their appeals on the fairness of the bidding process were heard. The legal action - the result of a lawsuit brought by the Salt Lake-based Yellow Cab and Ute Cab Co. The judge's ruling was by no means a total win for Yellow Cab and Ute Cab. "It's not likely we'll go back and modify what we've done,' said Simonsen, the lone dissenting vote on new taxi services. New taxi services originally were to start last year after a panel made up of airport and city officials awarded contracts to Cleveland-based Ace Taxi Service and Total Transit, headquartered in Glendale, Ariz. It won't bring about positive changes. Ruling halts Salt Lake City's effort to set up new cab service |
Friday 4 May 2012
Ruling halts Salt Lake City's effort to set up new cab service
