Updated Airport Short Passes at San Francisco International Airport 5.23.2023

With the increasing number of air travelers as well as feedback from the taxi industry, SFMTA will be implementing changes to the existing Airport Short Pass program for qualifying ramp taxi drivers.

Starting June 1, 2023, Ramp Taxi Medallions may not use a non-ramp spare vehicle to perform pick-ups at San Francisco International Airport (SFO).  Any Ramp Taxi Medallions that enter SFO in a spare are subject to fine.  SFMTA staff will monitor for compliance with this requirement, failure to comply may result in discipline. 

The following requirements to earn and use these Airport Short Passes as well as access to the airport for ramp taxi medallion holders will remain the same:

• Airport Short Incentive: Ramp taxi drivers that have completed 30 wheelchair trips per month, of which at least 10 must be completed in the outlying area of San Francisco or after hours. Of those 30 trips, at least 20 must be provided to SF Paratransit wheelchair users. Of the 30 wheelchair trips, drivers must serve 8 unique paratransit riders in the month.  Qualifying Ramp Taxi drivers will receive 30 short passes for the month. 

• To use a short pass, the qualified driver will first add themselves to the virtual queue using their driver app. They will then call the Shift Manager at 650-821-2704 between 07:00 and 01:00 and provide their medallion number to request a short. The driver will confirm entry within 10 minutes and must arrive at SFO within the standard 40 minute window or forfeit the short pass.

• Regular Access: Drivers who operate a qualifying ramp medallion that do not meet the threshold for the Airport Short Pass will still be allowed access to SFO in the “virtual queue” every day of the month. These drivers will have the same access to the “virtual queue” as P Medallions. To qualify, the ramp medallion that is being operated must have completed a minimum of ten (10) wheelchair trips, which can be a combination of Paratransit wheelchair trips and documented general public wheelchair trips.

 

No Access: Any driver who operates a ramp medallion that does not meet the existing minimum trip requirement of ten (10) wheelchair trips, which can be a combination of Paratransit wheelchair trips and documented general public wheelchair trips, WILL NOT be allowed to access the airport. SFMTA will be monitoring all airport trips and will take administrative action, including fines, suspension or revocation, against the ramp medallion drivers and holders who do not qualify to enter the airport.

Airport staff will receive notification prior to the beginning of each month, with the names of ramp drivers who have earned the Airport Short Incentive for that month. Any fraud or misrepresentations will result in the offending driver losing access to the airport incentive program for a minimum of 12-months and may be subject to other SFMTA administrative action. SFMTA will continue to evaluate this incentive program and reserves the right to update the program at any time.

In addition, the following updates will be made to these ramp taxi incentive programs:

Starting July 1, 2023, the Ramp Taxi Capital and Operating Incentive Program will be increasing the monthly incentives earned by eligible drivers. For up to 36 months, eligible applicants will now earn:

• Capital Incentive: $400 per month to help pay for the cost of purchasing a USED ramp taxi vehicle or $600 per month to help pay the cost of purchasing a NEW ramp taxi vehicle

- AND -

• Operating Incentive: $400 per month to help pay for fuel and maintenance costs associated with operating a ramp-taxi vehicle

To qualify to participate for the Ramp Taxi Capital and Operating Incentive Program, individuals must be a ramp taxi medallion holder and purchase a qualifying ramp taxi vehicle. Once enrolled into the program, participants must meet all the following requirements:

• Your vehicle must perform at least 20 verified SF Paratransit ramp-taxi wheelchair trips in the month. This can be accomplished by one driver or by multiple drivers operating the vehicle.
• You must submit log of all non-paratransit wheelchair trips for the month provided on the vehicle. The format of the log will be provided by the SF Paratransit Office.
• Your medallion and vehicle must remain in good standing with SFMTA.
• Your vehicle must be logged into a SFMTA-approved mobile “e-hail” app for at least 80 hours in the month. This can be accomplished by one driver or by multiple drivers operating the vehicle.

Additionally, the $100 monthly bonus: for ramp taxi drivers who meet the requirements for the monthly Airport Short Pass will be extended until June 2024.

Existing Ramp Taxi Incentives and Program Requirements That Remain in Effect

• $10 per paratransit trip incentive: for every wheelchair trip provided in a ramp taxi to a paratransit customer, driver receives a $10 incentive.
• $10 per public trip incentive: for every wheelchair trip provided in a ramp taxi to a general public customer, driver receives a $10 incentive.
• $15 per trip incentive for trips after 8:00pm and before 6:00am: for every wheelchair trip provided in a ramp taxi to a paratransit or general public customer during the hours of 8:00pm to 6:00am, driver receives a $15 incentive ($10 for IVR transactions).
• $15 per trip for wheelchair trips which originate in outlying areas (see map on page 3): for every wheelchair trip provided in a ramp taxi to a paratransit or general public customer in the outlying areas of San Francisco, as identified on the map on page 3, driver receives a $15 incentive per trip ($10 for IVR transactions).

• To be eligible for the ramp incentive program, all ramp drivers must be logged onto an SFMTA-approved e-hailing app (currently Flywheel only) for at least 80 hours per month.  Eligibility for credentials will be based on trips provided two months prior (i.e. credentials distributed in October will be based on trips provided in August).

 

Only one incentive type may be collected per trip. In order to receive credit for general public wheelchair trips, ramp taxi drivers must submit the online trip record within two hours of trip completion. The general public and Paratransit wheelchair trips are subject to regular video audits. Any general public wheelchair trips that cannot be verified through video will not be counted. Paratransit manual receipts (IVR) submissions for wheelchair trips will automatically default to the $10 incentive regardless of the location or time of pick-up. 

If you have any questions about the new ramp taxi incentives or requirements for the SFO short pass, please call 415.701.4400 or email SFTaxi@sfmta.com.

Map of the Outlying Areas of San Francisco