Livery cab drivers rally for 2nd day against TLC, city tickets

Livery cab drivers gathered in the Bronx for a second consecutive day to protest the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission and other city officials who they say unfairly ticket them.
Drivers rallied on 173rd Street and Webster Avenue Wednesday night to protest, saying they are continuously slapped with a number of fines from the TLC and the NYPD. A few dozen livery cab drivers gathered in a parking lot Thursday to continue to ask for a meeting with TLC officials to discuss a better fining system.
They say they receive violations for not displaying a TLC license, using a phone while driving and having tinted windows.
Some tickets cost $1,500 for a single offense, drivers say.
They say the main violation they are upset about is one they receive for picking up riders who hail their vehicles – a legal practice for yellow and green cabs but not for livery vehicles. According to the TLC, rides must be ordered through a dispatch center or on a smartphone app.
Drivers tell News 12 they are just trying to do their jobs by picking people up around the city, but the NYPD is standing in their way and targeting them with tickets.
They say the fine amounts are simply unreasonable and can mean the difference of being able to afford rent for the month.
Drivers say they are also losing profits to ride-sharing companies like Uber and Lyft and the added fines from the city and the TLC are making it much harder to make a living.
A spokesperson for the TLC told News 12 Wednesday night that the agency is committed to listening to drivers' concerns. News 12 reached out again in regards to the continued protests and has yet to hear back.
While the group that protested Thursday did also participate in the demonstrations Wednesday night, they say they have no affiliation to those who damaged a TLC agent's vehicle.