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Kusko Cab Picks Up Taxi Permits As Quyana Cab Goes Out Of Business

As of today, Quyana Cab is out of business and its 16 permits have been officially transferred to Kusko Cab.
Christine Trudeau
/
KYUK

As of today, Quyana Cab is out of business and its 16 permits have been officially transferred to Kusko Cab. KYUK sat down with the joint owner of Kusko Cab, NaimShabani, to get the details.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kusko Cab is now in the possession of 33 of Bethel’s 58 available taxi permits. Today, for the first time, Kusko Cab is operating 31 vehicles.

 

“There is no merger, there is none of that stuff. They are literally going out of business and we are taking their vehicle permits to convert into Kusko Cabs,” Shabani said.

 

That’s Naim Shabani, joint owner of Kusko Cab and a Bethel City Council member. In addition to the 16 permits it picked up from Quyana Cab, Kusko Cab will put some of the defunct company's drivers to work. Fourteen of the 16 that applied to transfer over, says Shabani.

 

Starting today, a phone call to Quyana Cab should automatically be picked up by Kusko Cab. Shabani expects a lot of adjusting in these first few months, including scheduling two dispatchers at a time, rather than one. Previously Kusko Cab was operating with a maximum of 17 vehicles; 31 will be different.

 

At Lumi's Auto, a former Quyana Cab gets fresh Kusko Cab decals.
Credit Christine Trudeau / KYUK
/
KYUK
At Lumi's Auto, a former Quyana Cab gets fresh Kusko Cab decals.

“It’s really uncharted territory because there is nothing that we can look back at historically that we can compare and get some ideas from. It’s kind of like reinventing the wheel,” said Shabani.

Down the line, they’re also considering the creation of the first taxi smartphone app in Bethel. Shabani says that he expects it to be fun.

 

Bethel Police Chief Burke Waldron, acting as Transportation Inspector, oversaw the transfer of the cab permits from Quyana Cab to Kusko Cab this week.  

 

KYUK reached out to Quyana Cab owners Min “Mindy” Cha and Woo “Joe” Yoon for comment, but have yet to hear back.