- Details
- Category: Industry News
The MCTA welcomed nearly 30 attendees to its March 4 post-Super Bowl partySt. Paul — Even a year before the February 4 Super Bowl LII brought scores of out-of-towners, football die-hards, and one of the busiest days in sports to Minneapolis, the members of the Minnesota Chauffeured Transportation Association (MCTA) have been gearing up for The Big Game’s nearby arrival.
On March 4, the association combined its annual holiday party with a post-Super Bowl celebration observing members’ successful completion of statewide transportation logistics that required true all-hands-on-deck participation and support. The celebratory dinner at The Lexington brought together nearly 30 local operators, their spouses, and teams to toast to a job well done.
MCTA members—including President Charlie Murray of Total Luxury Limousine (third from left)—enjoyed dinner, drinks, and a reception at The LexingtonMuch like previous years, the evening affair included a Year in Review slideshow and a trivia contest filled with fun facts about and childhood photos of attendees.
Current MCTA President Charlie Murray of Total Luxury Limousine—who began making his company’s Super Bowl plans as far back as January 2016—held a short program to recognize 2017’s outgoing president Len Nelson of Valley Limousine and secretary/treasurer Gina Brennan of Corporate Car & Coach.
Check out the April edition of Chauffeur Driven for expanded coverage of the event.
Visit mnlimo.org for more information.
[CD0318]
- Details
- Category: Industry News
Joe Puelo of Dav El/BostonCoach (left) with the pass to the Chauffeur Driven Executive Retreat raffled off by CD Industry & Brand Ambassador Philip JagielaMarlborough, Mass. — When the New England Livery Association (NELA) met up for its most recent quarterly meeting March 6, nearly 50 members and supporters were there, including CD Industry & Brand Ambassador Philip Jagiela.
Once NELA Executive Director Rick Szilagyi welcomed everyone, Scott Solombrino of Dav El/BostonCoach discussed what the National Limousine Association (NLA) has been doing for the industry both nationally and locally.
Scott Solombrino of Dav El/BostonCoachSolombrino updated those in attendance about the national association’s most recent Ride Responsibly PSA featuring actress, advocate, and abuse survivor Pamela Anderson, which has received widespread media attention and has generated veritably viral waves.
He also discussed a “Surface Transportation Tax” that Massachusetts legislators have been seeking both assistance and support with. The bill would impose a tax on TNCs from which livery and taxi operators would be exempt—and has been gaining traction in Florida, too. Additonally, NELA’s support of the bill could get the issue of fingerprint background checks back on the table.
To close out his time at the mic, Solombrino cited some interesting numbers: Uber has completed four billion while Lyft has done 300 million—comparatively, BostonCoach has 100,000 under its belt. This speaks of the demand for chauffeured transportation that TNCs have created a market for, which means that operators are well-positioned to capitalize on this opportunity by marketing their superior, safer services.
NELA Executive Director Rick Szilagyi (right) speaks with Brion and Amela Svenson of Four Star Limousine During Jagiela’s turn at the podium, he reiterated Solombrino’s point about a growing need for ground transportation: With a daughter living in a major American city, she has embraced the car services she now knows she has access to—an opportunity that ore traditional livery companies should be latching onto. He encouraged those in the audience to update their business plans to expand their overall business strengths accordingly.
Jagiela also highlighted the educational and networking opportunities at the upcoming Chauffeur Driven Executive Retreat, which will be held in San Diego from May 6-8, before raffling off a pass to the event. Joe Puelo of Dav El/BostonCoach was the lucky winner.
Members from all over New England attended the quarterly meetingKeynote Speaker Greg Nanigian of Sandler Training closed out the informational portion of the meeting, He explained different types of behavioral styles using the “DISC” method (dominant, influence, steadiness, and compliant) and how employing a mix of those personalities yields a well-rounded workplace.
Raffles that included a 50/50 and scratch-off lottery tickets closed out the evening meeting.
The next NELA event will be its Chauffeur Appreciation Day June 7, and its annual membership meeting will be June 19.
Visit nelivery.org for more information.
[0318]
- Details
- Category: Industry News
Melanie Methaven, secretariat of ACRISSGloucester, U.K. — In order to create a more equal and competitive landscape for travelers and chauffeur companies, ground transportation providers Amadeus and Blacklane have joined forces with the Association of Car Rental Industry System Standards (ACRISS) to ensure the creation and setting of professional driver service standards worldwide.
This partnership will introduce the Vehicle with Driver Service Industry (VDSI) standards, which define the following:
- Service categories: what is standard class, business class, and first class, and a representative vehicle for each category
- Vehicle standards, such as passenger and luggage capacity
- Specifying the details that involve services and options like “meet and greet,” “curbside pick-up,” “flight monitoring duration,” among others
Frank Steuer, Co-founder and CTO of Blacklane“The chauffeur industry was long overdue to create VDSI standards. Thanks to them we can simplify bookings for travelers and professional driver companies. Amadeus and Blacklane have worked closely with ACRISS on the development of these standards and we are excited to see them become a reality,” says Melanie Methven, secretariat of ACRISS.“Transfers are one of the biggest growth opportunities in travel. To reach their potential, the industry needs to speak the same language and have confidence in the service offered. We look forward to all professional driver services adopting VDSI standards as quickly as possible,” says Peter Altmann, head of Amadeus Cars & Transfers.
Blacklane, an ACRISS member since 2015, is the first chauffeured ground transporation company to adopt these new standards.
“Travelers expect transparent and comparable offers across all travel services,” says Co-founder and CTO Frank Steuer. “These new standards are essential to expand online availability and the ease of booking professional driver services. We are proud to be part of this initiative and we will continue working with travel industry players to make bookings fast and simple,”
MyCab, Taxi Tender, and Karhoo are also ACRISS members, and will support the new partnership by also adopting the new standards worldwide.
Visit acriss.org for more information.
[0318]