asking for justice

Cabbies arrested after protests over rule letting natural-gas cabs to cut in line at Love Field
By RICHARD ABSHIRE
Staff Writers
Published 31 January 2011 10:47 PM
Eight cabdrivers participating in a protest over a Dallas taxi ordinance were arrested Monday evening for blocking traffic at Dallas Love Field.
Dallas police spokesman Senior Cpl. Kevin Janse said that cabbies had left at least 50 taxis parked in a pickup lane at the airport and that those who were arrested face misdemeanor charges of obstructing traffic.
Access to the airport was blocked for 20 to 30 minutes to clear the way for wreckers that towed seven of the cabs before the rest of the drivers moved their cars.
The demonstration was part of a dispute over an ordinance that allows natural gas-powered cabs to cut in line at Love Field.
Independent drivers and small cab companies say that’s unfair because only large companies can afford the fuel conversions.
Mayor Tom Leppert has argued that favoring natural gas over gasoline can help improve air quality. A judge ruled in favor of the ordinance in September.
The drivers’ protest began Monday morning when about 300 of them marched outside the Super Bowl XLV media center in downtown Dallas, police said.
Later in the day, a caravan of cabbies jammed traffic on North Central Expressway and LBJ Freeway, traveling about 35 mph in what Janse called a “rolling protest.”
The Association of Taxicab Operators has threatened to boycott the Super Bowl if the policy isn’t changed. The city has said a boycott shouldn’t have a big impact because there are more than enough cabs.
“We’ve been on strike since Thursday,” said Mirza Sajid, an association spokesman. “We want justice, not Jim Crow back-of-the bus. We want first come, first serve.”
rabshire@dallasnews.com;
tbenning@dallasnews.com