In a taxi? You may be on camera!
Orlando December 11, 2008
Security cameras have begun showing up in Orlando taxicabs, and Mears Transportation Group expects to have them installed in all 600 of its cars running under the names City Cab, Yellow Cab, Checker Cab and other brands by springtime.
Looking for a crime-deterrent device as well as an aid for any crime or accident investigations, Mears is testing $900 video-camera systems in 10 cabs in its City Cabs fleet starting this week. The cabs run in Orlando, including downtown, and in unincorporated Orange County, though they do not operate at the airport.
The cameras monitor the cars' interiors and record to a computer hard drive.
Taxicab crime, ranging from robberies and assaults to vandalism and unpaid fares, is a key reason for the cameras, but not the only reason, said Mears spokesman Roger Chapin. Chapin said Mears hopes to have cameras in all its cabs by May.
