Atlanta City Council approves taxi fare increases

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - The Atlanta City Council has voted to raise taxi fares.

The new ordinance will increase taxi rates by 20 percent, especially when going to and from the airport.

The city says the changes are an effort to match the growing popularity of ride shares.

The new ordinance will set a minimum fare of $10 for each trip, increase fares from $2.50 to $3.50 for the first 1/8 mile and each additional 1/8 mile will go up 25 cents to 30 cents. Wait time will go up from $21 per hour to $24 per hour.

If you’re taking a taxi from the airport, trips downtown will increase to $36, trips to Midtown will increase to $38 and trips to Buckhead will increase to $48.

Atlanta Checker Cab President Rick Hewatt attended Monday’s city council meeting advocating for the changes, “We’ve barely kept afloat a lot of cab companies went out of business during the pandemic and during the onslaught of Uber and Lyft.”

Hewatt says the changes were long overdue. “We haven’t had a meter rate increase in over 18 years. No industry in Atlanta could survive with a rate that’s 18 years old,” Hewatt said. “Obviously, cost of living expenses has gone up tremendously in that amount of time.”

The new ordinance is set to head to Mayor Dickens’ desk to be signed and will go into effect immediately, city officials said.