Ocean City Council votes to cut down on taxi fees

OCEAN CITY, Md. –  The Town of Ocean City just took a major step in helping out the local taxi industry. The mayor and council recently voted to reduce some of the fees placed on taxi companies in order to help offset some of the losses caused by the rise of competitors like Uber and Lyft.

More specifically, the beach town will be reducing costs of medallions and inspections.

The cost of a medallion, something every taxi is required to have, is being cut in half from $500 to $250.

The cost of inspections are being cut by $50, from $150 to $100.

While we’re told the losses caused by ride sharing companies will never quite be made up, taxi companies say they appreciate every bit of help they get from the resort town.

Ralph DeAngelus, the co-owner of Taxi Taxi said, “They’ve really crushed us. They’ve hurt our business about 40% over the past couple of years…So we’re very appreciative to the mayor and city council for realizing that this if an issue and I don’t think it’s going to get any better but they’re helping.”

Ocean City officials tell us they hope this reduction in fees will help taxi companies adapt so they can continue to provide an important service to Ocean City’s residents and visitors.