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WILKES-BARRE — The owner of Burgit Taxi Co. in Wilkes-Barre plans to open a new taxi company in Scranton with his sister in 2016.
Making more profits is not his motivation, Robbie Burgit insists.
“Scranton always had three taxi companies and now it’s down to two. I’ve been asked for years and years to help out,” Burgit said on Friday. “It’s just something I want to accomplish.”
Burgit never before attempted to expand his taxi operations by adding a hub in Scranton, he said, because his late father, Burgit Taxi founder Bob Burgit, had an agreement with Brian McCarthy that neither would encroach on the other’s territory.
But McCarthy sold his McCArthy Flowered Cabs company, and Scranton residents keep calling Burgit and “complaining like crazy to me that they’re not getting service,” Burgit said.
Burgit has applied to the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission to open a company in Scranton with his sister, Renee Hill, whose husband operates auto-related businesses in the city.
The two existing Scranton cab companies — Red Top Cab Co. and Yellow Cab of Lackawanna — have objected to Burgit’s proposal, calling it “contrary to public interest,” and Burgit expects a hearing will be scheduled sometime around Halloween or Thanksgiving, he said.
But he’s confident he will prevail — so confident, in fact, that he’s already purchased a 1.7-acre property at the intersection of Cedar Avenue and East Locust Street. He plans to invest nearly $1 million to renovate an existing garage on the lot, furnish it, pave the lot and buy new taxis with state-of-the-art safety and security features, just like his cabs in Wilkes-Barre.
“I didn’t get the business license yet, but I certainly feel I’m technically qualified, and I’m financially qualified,” he said.
He and Hill have a name picked out as well — Burgit’s Electric City Taxi Inc.
Burgit expects to deploy 18 taxis in Scranton at the beginning of 2016, pending approval by the PUC. And he hopes Scranton area residents will help him by signing a petition to the PUC, testifying at the hearing, emailing him or posting a comment to his Facebook account.
Burgit said he “retires” his taxis after three years to maintain a positive image and quality service. He’ll be adding 2016 cabs to his Wilkes-Barre-based fleet as well, he noted.
The cabs will be equipped with security cameras, an alert light system, GPS tracking system and digital radios. Burgit taxis are driven by uniformed drivers and local and long-distance service is provided 24 hours per day, 365 days a year.
Burgit said providing a good, reliable service is Wilkes-Barre made him want to do the same for the residents of Scranton.
“They deserve it,” he said.