San Juan Mayor Upset Cabbie Wouldn't Take Her To Bronx
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- The mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico, is upset that a New York City taxi driver would not take her to the Bronx.
Carmen Yulin Cruz has been visiting New York. She said that on Wednesday she hailed a yellow taxi in Manhattan to go to her Bronx hotel.
After traveling for a few blocks, the driver said he would not go any further. Cruz said the driver claimed to not know where the hotel was and refused to go to the Bronx.
San Juan Mayor Upset Cabbie Wouldn't Take Her To Bronx
"As we are about $3.50 into the cab fare, he told out, 'You're going to the Bronx. Well, I don't know how to get there,'" Cruz told reporters, including WCBS 880's Rich Lamb. "I said, 'What do you mean you don't know how to get there? I gave you the address.' (He said), 'Well, I don't know how to get there, so if you can call somebody and find out how to get there, I'll take you.'"
She said a second cabbie did agree to go to the Bronx but complained the entire trip.
City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, who was born and raised in San Juan and whose district includes the Bronx, condemned the driver's behavior Thursday and promised an investigation.
San Juan Mayor Upset Cabbie Wouldn't Take Her To Bronx
Taxi drivers are required to take passengers to any address in the city. Drivers can be fined up to $500 for a first violation and up to $1,000 and a revoked license for three offenses.
"It is illegal in the city of New York to deny anyone a ride, and so we're going to continue to strive each and every day to ensure that the yellow cab industry and all cab services are ones that are providing service to all sections of the city," Mark-Viverito said.
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