Green Taxi Cooperative Before the PUC

“This is the first rung on the ladder of the American dream for them.”

The Pubic Utilities Commission is starting a week-long hearing today into the viability of a proposed worker owned taxi cooperative. Jason Wiener, the attorney representing the Green TaxiCo-operative owner/workers, says this weeks hearing is an evidentiary hearing to determine that the co-op meets the legal standard of financial and operational fitness. Wiener says that Green Taxi is a unique model of business ownership that allows drivers to have more financial security “there are 800 members and the business is owned by its member drivers, for its member drivers and it’s run by its drivers as well. It’s a democratically organized business and any profits can be returned to the drivers.”

The co-op members are comprised of people from 37 different countries and many are first generation immigrants “many were fleeing war torn countries, many immigrated here under diversity and other visas and this is the first rung on the ladder of the American dream for them.”

Last year, the passage of House Bill 1316 allowed for the regulated taxi cab market to be opened up to competition which Wiener says will benefit drivers and consumers. “The market here has been dominated by 3 companies for the last 20, 30 years in the Denver metro area, and other than a few smaller taxi cab companies, it’s really been a monopoly for two decades and at 800 (owner/operators) Green Taxi would be the largest single taxi cab company in the state of Colorado.”