Fuel Surcharge

Atlanta, GA (July 11, 2008) On Monday, the Atlanta City Council passed an ordinance allowing City of Atlanta taxicabs to charge a gas surcharge. The surcharge will be $2.00 per trip, when the average price of regular unleaded fuel, according to AAA published data, is $2.90 to $4.39 per gallon. If the average price of regular unleaded fuel rises to $4.40 or above, for a period of fourteen consecutive days, the Bureau will enact a $3.00 per trip surcharge. This surcharge will go into effect Monday, July 14, 2008. The last fare increase for Atlanta drivers was passed in October 2005. At that time, the average price of regular unleaded fuel was $2.61 per gallon.

Director M. S. Hull states "This was a very difficult decision for us to make. With the economic downturn, organizational cutbacks, and recent layoffs we understand that working families are struggling to meet the basic quality of life needs. With that in mind, we decided to move forward with a minimal fuel surcharge rather than an across the board fare increase to offset increasing fuel prices. It is imperative for us to keep adequate vehicle for hire services available for those who utilize this source of transportation and this surcharge will help us to continue to do that. We will also be exploring other opportunities in the future such as implementing ride sharing programs which will ease the economic impact of fuel costs to citizens, decrease traffic congestion, and improve the air quality by lowering pollution levels created from vehicular traffic."

Atlanta City Council Contact:

Public Information Officer
Ronald Ian Campbell
(404) 853-7128
(404) 550-8992