Taxi drivers stage park-in protest at SFO airport

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 19 (UPI) -- Taxicab drivers staged a protest Monday night against ride-sharing companies like Uber at San Francisco International Airport by refusing to pick up passengers.

Drivers began clogging up lanes at 9 p.m. to protest the fact that services like Uber, Lyft and Sidecar legally operate at SFO without being subject to the same rules such as the $4 airport fees taxis have to pay.

"We're trying to let people know that the taxi cab industry is being eaten away by the very small pie already that exists," said taxi driver Terry Wu. "And a lot of these drivers out here, they're losing an average of 30, 35, 40 percent of their income."

Ride-sharing services like Uber and taxi services have been warring over ride-sharing's rapid expansion without the same regulations as taxis, including mandatory background checks, licenses and fees.

SFO Spokesman Doug Yakel said the airport's goal is to offer customers plenty of options but to make it fair for the transport services.

"Our goal as an airport is to create a level-playing field," he told CBS San Francisco.