Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.
The Passenger Vehicle for Hire Board met on Thursday, October 1, 2026, at 7:30 PM in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The board approved consent items, conducted a contested towing violation hearing, and postponed an Uptown Taxi public hearing. No public comments were made. This summary is based solely on the meeting transcript, as no agenda or minutes were available.
The board heard a citation against American Tow and Recovery for allegedly failing to follow the city’s towing ordinance during a May 31, 2026, accident on I-24. Vehicle owners Mr. and Mrs. Hinton testified that the tow driver did not ask where they wanted the vehicle towed, did not inform them of the destination, and only pointed to a sign at the tow yard. They stated they were prepared to pay at the scene and would have paid for a tow to their home. Tow driver Nathaniel Anderson testified that he did not speak with the owners at the scene, took the vehicle to the yard on a police rotation call, and told them to call the office about pricing. Company attorney Dan Ripper argued that the ordinance only requires the driver to take the vehicle to the company’s place of business unless the owner secures payment, and that no payment arrangements were made. Board members expressed concern about the company’s communication history and noted this was the company’s third violation, including one prior 30-day suspension and one verbal warning. The board also discussed the lack of an explicit financial penalty in the ordinance but proceeded with a suspension.
The board was scheduled to hold a public hearing and vote on Uptown Taxi’s application, but the required separate notice for the company had not been properly sent out for this meeting. The board explained that the previous September meeting lacked a quorum and the notice had expired. A new notice must be sent at least 14 days in advance. The board voted to continue the matter to November 5, 2026.
I would like to welcome everyone to the passenger vehicle for higher board meeting. Today is Thursday, October first, twenty twenty-six. Would like to remind everyone that the application of the sunshine law is in effect. The minutes in front of you and the minutes that were emailed to you earlier today are from August 2026 and a special meeting on September 24th, 2026. Do we have a motion to approve those minutes? All seconds moved. All in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed. Motion carries. Uh temporaries issued. Uh request for driver permit renewals. Hey, Mercury Cab, a driver Alfred Wiley. That's passed everything. Um you want to vote on that, you want me to go on to the next thing. Okay. That's under B and number one for Mr. Wiley Mercury Cab. Uh under C updated taxi inspections, vehicle insurance fees, there were none. Uh under D, updated carriage company inspection, which is the horse and carriages. Chattanooga carriage company was inspected. All the horses are up to date on everything. Um good uh good wellness form and all the um carriages have passed. Very very minor things that they need to fix. Stuff that just wear and tear better than that. Um there's nothing that's gonna affect anything. That's about the only issues I had. All right, we have a motion to approve the renewal for Mr. Alfred Wiley and the inspections for Chat Nuclear Carriage Company. I'll make a motion to approve. A second. All in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed? Motion carries. Uh violation that was put off till today. I don't remember the date it was originally supposed to be heard, but it's put off till today for American Tower and Recovery for section thirty-five one sixty-three. Um ordinate. I apologize for not being on the agenda, but our system went down when we tried to put it all off, so I couldn't get to print it off till yesterday. Uh there do I need to put those under oath. Anyone that's going to uh speak today needs to be under oath.