Second quarterly report for the Taxi Upfront Fare Pilot

Dear San Francisco Taxi Industry:

We wanted to inform you that we have recently completed the second quarterly report for the Taxi Upfront Fare Pilot (Pilot).  The Q1 and the Q2 reports may be found here. We appreciate the comments and feedback provided at the taxi outreach meetings and by email. Please feel free to email us at sftaxi@sfmta.com if you would like to make additional comments.

As discussed at the outreach meeting a few weeks ago, staff is bringing a request to the SFMTA Board at the September 19th meeting to extend the term of the Pilot to allow more time for the service to operate and for staff to analyze and measure the outcomes.

In addition to requesting the SFMTA Board extend the Pilot term, staff is also requesting a few additional amendments to the Transportation Code.

In summary, the following updates are being proposed:

• Extend the Upfront Fare Pilot to a date no later than June 30, 2025 to allow for further analysis and data gathering.
• Authorize the Director of Transportation to establish guidelines related to in-taxi cameras.  Cameras have become commonplace in the for-hire industry, and there are currently minimal rules related to cameras used in San Francisco Taxis.  Given the pace of technological change, delegating authority to the Director of Transportation to establish technical requirements will provide the ability to address changing conditions more efficiently. If approved, prior to establishing requirements, staff will solicit feedback from taxi industry stakeholders on proposed standards.
• Amend dispatch data requirements and authorize the Director of Transportation to specify dispatch data standards in preparation for the transition to the internationally-established Mobility Data Standards (MDS). MDS provides a standard data specification so that taxis and other mobility services can integrate to one standard across multiple jurisdictions.

If you have any questions, please email SFTaxi@sfmta.com.