‘chauffeur’
courtesy of ‘NCinDC’

As of yesterday, 1000 DC cabbies, about 1/8th of the city’s drivers, are on strike.  They are protesting the Council’s proposal to instate a medallion system, similar to that of New York City, on taxi drivers in the district.  Medallions are essentially a system of licensing for cab drivers.  The city will offer a set number of medallions that drivers will have to pay for on a monthly basis.  The Council asserts that this will limit the number of taxis in the DC and is important to protecting the transport industry in the city (or maybe its just a simple revenue generator for the city?).  The striking cabbies fear that medallions will cut their profits and make it impossible for individuals and small businesses to operate.  Public hearings on the proposal are scheduled for October 1.