Results of Lynn taxi cab inspections far from fare

LYNN – When city officials inspected Lynn’s taxicabs last month, what they found was disturbing.Less than 10 percent of the vehicles run by Tom’s Taxi passed the safety check. Only 20 percent of both the Garcia Taxi and the All-City fleets were deemed acceptable, while 50 percent of the Ocean Transportation Livery vehicles passed muster.K & L Transportation did not submit its livery vehicle for inspection. As a result, its license to operate in Lynn will be invalidated, according to City Clerk Mary Audley. The single vehicle operated by Peoples Livery passed the inspection.Robert W. LeBlanc, a Lynn police officer assigned to oversee the annual taxi inspection, provided a summary of the July 23-24 inspections conducted at the public works garage on Commercial Street.”A total of 43 livery and taxi vehicles were submitted by various license holders for inspections. Out of the 43 vehicles, only 12 passed without any violations,” he said, noting that 15 failed for minor violations while the 16 others had both minor and major deficiencies.”All vehicles that had failed for either minor or major violations were immediately repaired and re-inspected,” he said.Minor violations include tire conditions, defective lights, worn windshield wiper blades and interior and exterior body conditions such as broken seats and sharp metal. Major violations include faulty ball joints, tie rods, control arms and emergency brakes, all of which could lead to serious accident and passenger injury.LeBlanc said the city’s taxi fleet was in better condition during last year’s inspection, when 50 percent of the total fleet passed the first round.”Most of the problems this year were due to neglect. The companies are not maintaining the vehicles until they have to,” he said. “This wasn’t a surprise inspection. They had plenty of notice and time to prepare.”The inspections were done by public works supervisor Anthony Gately and department mechanics Ronald MacDonald, Ron D’Urso and Peter Barry. State Registry of Motor Vehicles inspectors James Valley, Joseph Fiandaca and Brian Paige from the Safety & Compliance Inspection Unit at the Lawrence branch office were also present.”I have a bark, but the Registry officers have a bite,” said LeBlanc, explaining that they are empowered to remove a vehicle’s inspection sticker on the spot. We also had inspectors from the state Registry of Motor Vehicles on hand.”Public Works Director Jay Fink said bringing Lynn police and state Registry officers to the inspection makes the process more effective. “We did inspections in the past and made a list of deficiencies, but then the taxis never came back,” he said.If inspectors determine a vehicle is too unsafe to return to the road, it can be towed to a repair garage at the company’s expense, according to LeBlanc.In order to pass inspection, the back seat of a taxicab must be locked into place, the seatbelts exposed. It’s a common deficiency, mostly because drivers routinely sweep the back seat for loose change or jewelry once the passengers have exited, LeBlanc said.Since police officers are on hand, checking a cabbie’s background is relatively simple. Those who show up behind the wheel of a taxi with a suspended or revoked driver’s license are arrested and handcuffed at the scene. Police can also check for warrants since some of the city’s cabbies have been convicted of various offenses and are listed on the state’s Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) database.Acting Police Chief Kevin Coppinger remains concerned that so many cabs failed the initial inspection, in some cases 90 percent of the fleet, LeBlanc said.The city is not required by the state to conduct cab inspections. The cabs must also pass an annual state inspection like any other passenger car or truck.”It’s making a difference,” Fink said.