News Details (Posted: August 29, 2006):

Shamrock Awaits Call on Staying in Town

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Shamrock Yellow Cab, with authority to operate in Longmont until Saturday, will have a chance to extend its life, giving the city two cab companies.

On Wednesday, the Colorado Public Utilities Commission will consider a temporary authority for Shamrock to operate in Longmont for six months.

PUC spokesman Terry Bote said Shamrock’s owner will have to show an “immediate and urgent” need for its service and show that no other service can fulfill that need.

That would mean Shamrock owner Tom Hoffman would have to show that Longmont’s longtime cab company, Town & Country Taxi Service, can’t fulfill demand.

Hoffman said he initially thought it would take 30 days to get on the agenda but realized late last week that it takes only seven days. Therefore, he got a late start on collecting letters of support from taxi customers, which will be an important part of his case to the PUC.

So far, he estimated he has 80 letters, though many don’t explain how Town & Country doesn’t provide adequate service in Longmont.

Included with the letters will be an affidavit from Hoffman stating that he believes more people would support Shamrock if they didn’t feel repercussions from Town & Country.

“We are doing the best we can to get out and talk to people. We are talking to bars and restaurants,” Hoffman said.

Attorney Andy Newell, who represents Town & Country, said he thinks the commission should deny the application because there’s no urgent need for another taxi service in town.

“That’s a pretty high standard that they cannot meet,” he said.

Newell said Hoffman is trying to take over Town & Country’s business.

Curtis Andersen was among the taxi customers who wrote a letter in support of Shamrock this week.

“I would like to see it work out to be a fair deal for everybody,” he said. “I don’t want to see anything bad happen to Town & Country, but it would be good to have another cab company in town for competition.”

Andersen, who is legally blind and is largely dependent on taxi services, said buses and other transportation programs aren’t always available.

Taxi companies are regulated by the state, and the PUC usually allows only one company to provide the service in a town or city outside of the Denver metro area.

However, in additional to Town & Country, Metro Taxi Inc. holds an authority to operate in Longmont, but it doesn’t do so.

On Aug. 2, Town & Country owners Gary and Rachel Von Rivenburgh agreed to let Shamrock take over the taxi authority for 30 days. They discontinued taxi service July 27, without giving notice to customers, when they thought their insurance had lapsed.

After making the agreement with Shamrock, the Von Rivenburghs secured new insurance, but they also found out their old insurance hadn’t lapsed. They unsuccessfully lobbied the PUC to end the 30-day agreement with Shamrock.

The company has been operating through Shamrock since and expects to resume its operations Saturday