As things stand now, Village Car Service is not allowed to both pick up and drop off customers in Rockville Centre. “Right now, they’re not allowed to take a call to, say, pick someone up at George Martin and drive them to an address in Rockville Centre,” Spadaro explained. “So [the license] would give them that ability that they could work totally within the village’s confines. They can pick someone up at the airport and bring them here. They can pick someone up at their house in Rockville Centre and [take] them to the airport or [take] them to Lynbrook, but they can’t do both ends of the trip in Rockville Centre.”

Village Car Service did not want to take spots in the Long Island Rail Road station lot or build a taxi stand. Cars would be dispatched from Lynbrook to Rockville Centre.

Spadaro said that O’Neill’s request did not prove that there was a public need for a second taxi service in the village. In his letter to O’Neill explaining why the request was denied, Spadaro acknowledged some of All Island Transportation’s deficiencies, including that it is sometimes difficult to get a cab and that not all cars are in optimal condition.

“However, to recognize the shortcomings is not the equivalent of a conclusion that the current service is inadequate to meet the public need or convenience,” Spadaro wrote, “or that the current vehicular fleet is deficient or unsafe.”

He explained that while some residents sent in the form letter asking for a second service, there have not been complaints about the current taxi service.

“If we were getting complaints about not being able to get cabs all the time, then I’d feel there was a need,” Spadaro said. “But the reality is, we don’t get those calls. The trustees don’t get those calls. And they get calls on everything. So if they’re not complaining, then I don’t really feel there’s a need at this point.”

O’Neill said he plans to challenge the decision and appeal to the Board of Trustees. It would then be up to the board to decide whether to allow Village Car Service to operate in the village.

“I’ve been a competitor my whole life,” O’Neill said. “I welcome competition because it keeps me on my toes instead of laid back.

“Residents deserve to have a choice in the village,” he added.