Wanted to make sure everyone got this one, from several months ago <br><br><h1><a href="http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/blind_trust_cabs_FAAWRl5hlXXKPEjWvC3oGL">Blind-trust cabs</a></h1>
<h2 class="readout">Audio foils taxi thieves</h2>
<ul id="story-meta"><li class="byline">By JENNIFER FERMINO Transit Reporter</li><li class="date updated"><span>Last Updated:</span> 4:28 PM, April 18, 2012</li><li class="date posted">
<span>Posted: </span> 2:58 AM, April 18, 2012</li></ul>
<p>Stealing from the blind is about to get a whole lot harder — for cabbies. </p><p>Taxis
will soon be equipped with new technology that will help blind riders
check the meter for overcharges and avoid credit-card fraud.</p><p>A
computerized voice will announce the fare throughout the trip, alerting
the blind and visually impaired upon each click of the taxi’s meter. </p><p>The riders will then follow step-by-step spoken instructions for paying by credit card by using the taxi’s touch screen. </p><p>Previously,
blind passengers would have to turn over their credit card and entrust
the driver to charge them the correct fare and tip — a leap of faith
that many blind passengers, including former Gov. David Paterson,
refused to make. </p>
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<img alt="SEE HERE! Ex-Gov. David Paterson pays his cab fare with a credit card yesterday, thanks to a new audio program to protect the blind." title="SEE HERE! Ex-Gov. David Paterson pays his cab fare with a credit card yesterday, thanks to a new audio program to protect the blind." src="http://www.nypost.com/rw/nypost/2012/04/18/news/web_photos/18.1n016.paterson--300x300.jpg" height="300" width="300">
<div class="photo-credit">Laura Cavanaugh</div>
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<strong>SEE HERE!</strong> Ex-Gov. David Paterson pays his cab fare with a credit card yesterday, thanks to a new audio program to protect the blind.</div>
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<p>“Now I can pay by credit card,” said Paterson, who attended the ceremony unveiling the software. </p><p>It will help those with vision problems avoid getting ripped off, said Paterson, who is legally blind. </p><p>“I’ve
had at times felt the fare had to be a whole lot less than what I was
being charged,” said Paterson. “But I could never prove it.” </p><p>A consultant for the blind also said yesterday that she was once duped by a driver who thought he deserved a higher tip. </p><p>“I’ve even been ripped off by someone who thought a 30 percent tip was a good idea, despite what I wanted,” said Ellen Rubin. </p>
<p>Some
1,250 cabs will be equipped with the new units — designed by
taxi-software vendor Creative Mobile Technologies — by the end of May. </p><p>Eventually, 6,600 cabs with CMT software — half of the city’s fleet — will have the programs. </p><p>Riders
can either ask drivers to turn on the program or request a free swipe
card from CMT, which would allow them to activate the software
themselves. </p><p>At the end of the trip, the audio program will read
aloud the entire bill, specifying how much of it is the fare, tolls and
extra charges. </p><p>City Councilman James Vacca spearheaded the push for the new system because his father was blind.</p><p> “This issue is personal for me,” he said. </p><br clear="all"><br>-- <br><div>Kathryn Carroll</div>
<div>St. John's University School of Law 2013<br>(Ph.) 347-455-1521<br></div><div style="padding:0px;text-align:left;color:black;line-height:130%;overflow:hidden;font-size:10px;margin-top:0px;margin-left:0px;word-wrap:break-word">
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