About Us & FAQ
Company Overview
T.C. Transportation, a division of Tri-City Taxi, has a history that demonstrates and shows determination, innovation, and an adherence to its core values. To become the company that it is today was not an easy road. With changes in services, advances in transportation technology, and the guidance of its leaders the company has shown it can not only keep pace, but it can excel in an ever changing transportation industry.
A-1 Tri-City Taxi Inc. was founded with two vehicles and two employees in 1980. Ben/Franklin Transit (BFT) started service with Tri-City Taxi in 1986. Tri-City Taxi began providing supplemental Dial-A-Ride (DAR) services and feeder route service to their clients. By 1994 the company had grown to ten vehicles and eighteen employees.
Tri-City Taxi was now entering a new realm of transportation, with the addition of more equipment, including lift-equipped vans and the upgrading of communications equipment. This new level of business pushed Tri-City Taxi into a new role and the company began placing more emphasis on customer service and their role in the community.
In 1999, having grown to twenty one vehicles and forty employees, the company found it necessary to move from Kennewick to a larger facility in Pasco. In addition to the services that Tri-City Taxi was already providing, in 2002 the company was awarded the contract with Ben/Franklin Transit to provide DAR service, Feeder Route Service, Trans-Plus Night Service and Van Pool Guaranteed Ride Home Service. Over the next year, the amount of business the company did increased so much that they again found themselves in need of a larger facility. In 2003 Tri-City Taxi purchased 4.2 acres with two preexisting buildings totaling 17,000 sq. feet. This new acquisition also provided adequate parking for the company’s needs in the future.
In July of 2004 Tri-City Taxi was awarded a contract to provide non-emergency medical transportation to ambulatory and non-ambulatory clients of Special Mobility Services (SMS). This new contract gave the company a new branch and larger reach of its services. This prompted the company to open a new office and facilities in Moses Lake.
In the fall of 2004, at the requests of the community, BFT allowed Tri-City Taxi to expand the hours of the Trans-Plus Night Service. The previous operating hours were from 7:00pm - 11:00pm. The company added 3 1/2 hours to its service. Presently the service is offered from 7:00pm - 2:30 am; during this time Sunday Service was also introduced. In July 2005 the company expanded the Night and Sunday service into the cities of Benton City and Prosser, WA.
In July 2006 after providing 20 years of exceptional service under contract with People for People (PFP) in the Tri-City area, the company began to provide non-emergency medical transportation to clients of PFP in Yakima, WA.
This new expansion into Yakima allowed for Tri-City Taxi to bid and be awarded a contract with Yakima Transit in August 2006. This new contract was to provide Dial-A-Ride, or Para-Transit, services to clients of Yakima Transit. This new contract gave rise tothe company to yet again purchase land for a new building. The company acquired 2.5 acres of land in Yakima and built a building with 10,000 sq feet. This new facility is equipped with full service for vehicles and complete in-house operations.
In December of 2006, Tri-City Taxi and its owners formed T.C. Transportation Services LLC. T.C. Transportation was formed and became a division of A-1 Tri-City Taxi, Inc. to alleviate the confusion of the reference to the Tri-Cities, especially when it was performing work in other areas outside of the Tri-Cities.
In December of 2008 after bidding and being awarded the contract, T.C. Transportation began the operation of all transit services, both fixed route and Para transit for the city of Union Gap. This most recent expansion brought the company to its present size of 82 vehicles and 176 employees.
Presently the company does in excess of 500,000 boardings per year. This level of experience helps to ensure that T.C. Transportation has the capabilities of providing exceptional service to its clients both now and in the future. The company has an intensive driver training program. This program consist of American Red Cross First-Aid, adult, child and infant CPR, Blood Borne Pathogen training, National Safety Council DDC-4 Defensive Driver Training. The company also utilizes and enforces Community Transportation Association approved Passenger Assistance, Sensitivity and Safety training.
Prior to the recent fuel price increases, T.C. Transportation began exploring and trying new and innovative ways to not only hold the line on cost increases, but also ways to reduce the company’s negative impact on the environment. In March of 2005 the company began purchasing Toyota Prius electrical hybrid vehicles. In fact it was the first taxi company in the United States to utilize hybrid technology in its fleet. The company hoped that, besides the 80% reduction of pollutants, the better fuel economy would help lessen the impact of fuel price increases on its bottom line; this has allowed the company to keep any price increases to an absolute minimum. The company’s complex and unique business structure as well as its wide variety of services allows the company to provide industry data concerning the longevity and dependability of these relatively new hybrid vehicles at an accelerated rate. With this data the company has encouraged other fleet owners to convert to these types of vehicles. The company is also investigating larger equipment that is ADA compliant for ambulatory and non-ambulatory clients and that will utilize new technology to improve fuel economy and reduce emissions.
T.C. Transportation’s record and history demonstrates that it is a forward thinking and innovative company. T.C. Transportation brings experience and the ability to adapt to the needs of its clients, the ability to go balls deep, both external and internal, putting T.C. Transportation in a position to be a leader and an example in the public transportation industry.
