Editor:
I've been driving a taxi in Santa Monica for five years and I'm convinced that the city is somehow being paid off by certain hotels not to install taxi stands outside their establishments.
This way, the doormen at these hotels can usher hotel guests into more expensive black (town) cars and thereby gouge the public and line their pockets. I would like to know why the Huntley Hotel doesn't have at least two-three taxi stands just south of their front door or the Le Meridian Delfina doesn't show any taxi stands just west of their hotel? I guess the city needs their quarters in the meters and doesn't care about the guests of Santa Monica being fleeced while crooked door men get rich. If the city wants to both serve the public and help honest hard working taxi drivers earn a living then they will install taxi stands at every hotel that will be for only taxis such as outside the Fairmont on Wilshire Boulevard.
Every hotel in town should have cost effective city licensed taxis waiting in legal taxi stands outside the hotel doors. I thought the taxi franchise system was supposed to benefit the community and taxi drivers when it was created in 2011. Seems the only people benefiting are the hotel doormen who seemingly with the city's blessing are doing very well for themselves while taxi drivers are being cheated by the city's non action.
Sanford Clair
Santa Monica
