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Waiting list
UDC, Taxicab Commission assailed for taking money
to train cab drivers while licensing exam is in limbo
(Published February 9, 2004)

By JULIA BILZ
Staff Writer

Aspiring taxicab drivers are complaining that it is currently impossible to become a taxicab driver in the District due to suspension of the hacker’s test required to get their license.

Marquell Murphy is among the estimated 500-600 persons who are on a waiting list to take the test. Murphy said he paid $250 when he enrolled in the University of the District of Columbia’s taxicab course last May but has still been unable to take the licensing test.

"I expected a one- or two-month wait to take the license test, but they never called me," he said. "They’re still taking people’s money."

Murphy is currently working at another job but continues to wait for the opportunity to be a licensed cab driver.

"I’m at a brick wall," he said.

The hacker’s test was suspended after D.C. Taxicab Commissioner Sandra Seegars filed a lawsuit over discrepancies in test questions last October.

"Some of the questions had the wrong answers," she said.

UDC spokesman Mike Andrews said the university is still signing up people for the program. However, he said students are told when they sign up that the Taxicab Commission is not administering the exam.

"From what I understand, we’ve been telling them all along," he said.

The backlog of people who need to take the test continues to grow, as UDC continues to offer the first part of a process than cannot be completed. Until the test is offered again, many people continue to wait.

Mahboob Asghar said he took the taxicab course last April and, like every other participant, has not received a date to take the test. He said he has no idea when he can expect to take the test. Asghar said he took three weeks off from his previous job to enroll in the course and is currently unemployed.

"I’m jobless and need to pay my bills," he said.

Charles Shelton also took the course, but says he’s not as angry about the long wait as Murphy and Asghar.

"I understand the commission will drag its feet – there are 2,600 cabs in D.C. They don’t need drivers," he said.

Shelton said he appreciates the extra time off to "get all [the material] down." He said he plans to set up the test date himself when it’s most convenient to his schedule.

Applicants must complete a two-part process before becoming taxicab drivers. They first take a 10-day course at the University of the District of Columbia and then take a hacker’s test. After passing the test, students get their license.

After Seegars filed the lawsuit, commission Chairman Lee Williams appointed a task force to review test questions. Task force members include commissioners Theresa Travis and Hoarace Kreitzman; Phillip Lebet of Diamond Cab Co.; Lucius Anderson, director of continuing education at UDC; and Caroline Haye, coordinator of the taxicab training program at UDC. Williams and the task force last met Jan. 30 to discuss test questions.

Kimberly Lewis, a staff member for the Taxicab Commission, said the task force has "just about finished" reviewing the test questions and the project is "almost completed." Lewis could not provide a timetable as
to when testing will start again.

The Taxicab Commission’s education committee, chaired by Commissioner Stanley Tapscott, also is trying to resolve the testing problems.

"There’s too much confusion right now and we need to clear it up," he said.

The education committee plans to meet Feb. 18 to "get things back on track. There’s not a lot I can do until then," he said.