College Cabs sold to Moscow Taxi in May 2024, said Rob Borden, one of the former owners of College Cabs. Borden, along with Phi Gamma Delta fraternity brother Zane Larsen, founded the business in 2012.
“The problem was we wanted to be able to go downtown and go drinking safely, and we didn’t have a solution, because there were no taxis readily available, so we started our own…we went out and we ended up starting with six taxis,” he said.
Borden bought Larsen out of the company in 2017. Along with his wife April, they grew to a total of 12 taxis, Borden said.
Last year, the Bordens felt they could no longer give College Cabs the necessary time and attention it deserves as they were both involved in other businesses, Borden said. After considering various offers, they sold the company to Moscow Taxi owners Kyle and Aubrey Brown.
“We decided that their offer made the most sense because they already were familiar with what the business needed to be able to succeed,” he said “Now, they are the only taxi company, to my knowledge, in the area, so congratulations to them.”
During their time running the business, staffing was a significant issue, he said.
“The hardest thing was to find people who wanted to do the work and the other piece is that people didn’t want to pay what it costs to get the work done,” he said.
Working with a limited number of drivers was something the company always tried to improve upon, but to little avail, he said.
“[I wanted to] pay the drivers the best that we could, because I felt like that was a way to get people to give up their nights and weekends, but again, we ran into a supply and demand issue with what the market was willing to pay for a ride,” he said.
While they felt their employees were well paid, it was still difficult for those involved to make significant profits. College Cabs drivers worked as independent contractors, meaning they could keep what they made from their rides. At the end of the week, drivers would then pay the company per mileage rate, Borden said.
“What’s interesting is that a $20 cab ride that you take is maybe only three or four miles,” he said. “However, you would have to drive three or four miles to get to the person to then drive them there three or four miles and then you have to drive three or four miles back to the next person.”
With drivers having to pay for fuel and only making about $15-20 an hour, depending on how many rides they were doing, it was difficult to make the job appealing. This made it harder for both the employees and employers to make significant profits without raising prices for consumers, Borden said.
These issues still remain for the company now, said Moscow Taxi co-owner Kyle Brown, who has run the business alongside his wife Aubrey since February 2014.
“We inherited a company that was in flux…it’s just the nature of the business,” he said. “So, it wasn’t surprising, but we’ve been struggling to keep up with staffing ever since.”
Beyond just the company and employees, these issues impacted customers as well, Borden said. These issues include responsiveness and wait times, a result of a limited number of drivers and a less urbanized area.
Aryan Puthran, junior computer science major, who has used College Cabs before, also indicated pricing and wait time issues.
“I think it’s a little bit more on the expensive side. It’s not something you can do every day, but it’s not too bad,” he said. “The first time I called a ride, I had some troubles. The wait time was, I think, two hours and I was stuck at the airport for that amount of time.”
However, Puthran said these issues were inconsistent.
“Every other time after that, I didn’t have an issue,” he said.
What is particularly difficult about this is dealing with the same costs and operational standards as cab companies in big cities, Brown said.
“We’re going to be grouped in with a bunch of New York, Chicago and Seattle cab drivers. Our cost of operating is kind of unnaturally high, and then we’re dealing with a limited market,” he said. “That’s what we’d like to improve upon with College Cabs [and] what they started. I think the better we do and the more we can satisfy people that need us a lot, the better we’re going to be in this kind of area.”
Coping with the competition brought about by larger rideshare companies like Uber and Lyft can make business more difficult, Brown said.
As Moscow Taxi oversees College Cabs, Borden said he hopes they rise above these challenges.
“I think that Moscow Taxi has a really hard uphill battle, financially, to try and make sure that it stays a viable business. They’re going to have to put in the work and they’re going to have to be willing to be those drivers, or if they’re not willing to be those drivers, they need to make sure that they’re willing to fully pay what that drivers’ time is worth,” he said. “Otherwise, I think the Pullman community probably is going to suffer and not have much of a cab company left at all.”
Boosting employment, primarily with Pullman in mind, is a major focus for Moscow Taxi, Brown said.
“We’re pretty well-staffed in Moscow, which makes it really nice. That makes us able to focus on keeping up with Pullman issues, and [Rob and April] have a nice system in place that does pretty much take care of itself,” he said. “In that way, it hasn’t been all that difficult being spread out.”
Despite any difficulties in running College Cabs, the Bordens’ time owning the company had its highlights, Borden said.
“We used to own limos and party buses at one time, and we used to do all sorts of different fun parties. We used to go to all the community events like the Lentil Festival, and so we got to be involved in the community,” he said. “I do look fondly on that time, but it was time to move on.”
While these difficulties may have been felt by those in the community, many still benefit from College Cabs’ services, said senior chemistry major Claire Johanson.
“The pricing is great, I know they cap it off at like $25,” she said. “Sometimes it [takes] kind of long to get a ride…but they’re sweet when you get there and they’re really understanding.”
Even with new ownership, the existing system for getting in touch with College Cabs will remain, Brown said.
As far as improving the cab industry in Pullman and Moscow, the communities of both cities can play a significant role.
“It just gets back to being as good as we can and being as profitable as possible, and then we can put a ton of cars on the road and try to be convenient, reliable and effective for everybody,” Brown said. “It takes a village to take care of a community’s transportation needs.”
Those interested in working with the company may reach Moscow Taxi at (208) 892-4544 or through their website.
