There are other apps that provide car service that aren’t as well-known. One is Ride Command, produced by Maryland entrepreneur Alan Stapleton. He calls his service the first reverse auction bidding for car service, whereby a customer places a ride request and can either take the flat price that comes back or goes to reverse bidding, with the car companies having to choose if they want to submit a lower price. Stapleton says his is a software company, not a transportation company, allowing him to keep the PTC dogs at bay.
As far as the $50 minimum fare goes, Commissioner Crist is willing to revisit the limit. But he says those are “external rules,” and his focus is on internal issues, which now include finding a replacement for Cesar Padilla.
Several observers say that the PTC should be folded into the county. Mayor Bob Buckhorn says that would take the politics and ethical lapses out of it, and would encourage companies like Uber to come to Tampa. “It would encourage more competition, which is only a good thing.”
Former PTC lobbyist Vic DiMaio also thinks the county should run the organization. During the Kevin White era, DiMaio was paid $3,000-$5,000 a month to serve as a lobbyist for the group. Because the PTC is a state agency, he had to take trips to Tallahassee for the most menial of tasks.
The PTC recently spent $72,000 to hire the lobbyists Corcoran & Johnston, which Crist says is essential to make sure nothing happens without the agency’s consent in Tallahassee. But the move to hire a public relations firm went too far for some critics, and he retreated from doing that — for now.
“Ridiculous,” says Sharon Calvert about the PR idea. “Does Crist think better messaging brings innovation and competition to our area? Does Crist think better messaging stops unethical or illegal activities that have been associated with this commission?”
The PTC chair is well aware of that mentality as he prepares to present his plans to the state legislature next spring. But local legislators will meet later this year, and they could very well pass a bill that will kill the PTC.
