BY PETE DONOHUE

Taxi drivers are threatening to strike if the city continues to insist on using satellite technology to track their every move, cabbie advocates warned yesterday.
The New York Taxi Workers Alliance is calling on drivers to show their anger over the Big Brother technology outside the Taxi and Limousine Commission's headquarters on Tuesday.

The executive director of the alliance, the biggest drivers' organization in the city, said a strike is definitely possible.

"I've never seen drivers this upset," Bhairavi Desai said.

The alliance says its membership has grown to more than 7,000, far more than the 700 or so it had in 1998 when it promoted a one-day strike that idled thousands of cabs. But it also has had protests over the past several years where just dozens of drivers attended.

More than two years ago, the TLC passed rules mandating yellow taxicabs be rigged with several new features, including the tracking technology and credit/debit card readers.

The TLC is in a "testing phase" involving up to 200 outfitted cabs. A deadline for compliance by the rest of the privately owned fleet has not been set.

"It's an invasion of privacy," said Alfred Virgil, 59, a veteran cabbie, adding he would refuse to drive at least temporarily if a strike was called.

Medallion owners will have to pay for the new equipment and maintenance, now pegged at between $2,800 and $5,400 per cab over three years. And drivers who rent fleet cabs said they expect to wind up paying for the systems through higher cab rental rates.

TLC Chairman Matthew Daus said the new features will make it much easier for passengers to recover lost property. Giving more payment options will increase ridership and tips, he said.

 
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/local/story/501609p-423025c.html