A city taxi driver involved in a shocking incident where her cab plowed into two women on a sidewalk has had her license suspended, according to officials on Tuesday. This development comes as one of her recent passengers recounted a terrifying journey with the driver hours before the incident.
The Taxi and Limousine Commission announced the suspension of 25-year-old Mahamuda Akter’s license as they continue to investigate the alarming events that unfolded on Saturday afternoon, which were captured on video.
Disturbing footage shows the cab violently veering into pedestrians, injuring both, and subsequently crashing into a Lower East Side bodega around 2:45 p.m., authorities reported.
Millicent Faber, a 24-year-old graphic designer, shared her experience with The Post, describing how she was applying lipstick on the sidewalk when the taxi suddenly struck. “The taxi came out of nowhere,” she recounted.
As a result of the crash, Faber suffered fractures to both of her legs, while her 25-year-old companion, who was propelled down the stairs of a nearby deli basement, incurred a broken back and a concussion.
“I never imagined something like this could happen to me, but I’m grateful to be alive,” Faber expressed.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation and Akter has not been charged.
A passenger who was in the same taxi hours before the crash told The Post that the cabbie was driving erratically even then, turning his morning ride from Battery Park to the East Village into a 30 minute rollercoaster.
“I’ve never been that unsafe in a taxi, it was crazy,” said Tom, a 29-year-old Manhattan resident, who asked not to be identified using his full name.
He provided photos he took that showing his cab’s medallion and license plate number, which matched with the yellow taxi that crashed later that day. He also said he recognized his driver as the one captured in video of the aftermath of the collision.
Akter was approved for a TLC license in October and had no violations leading up to the crash, a spokesman for the commission told The Post. A DMV official also said that there were no infractions tied to the driver.
“We take the safety of pedestrians, the riding public, and drivers extremely seriously, and we are grateful that everyone involved in Saturday’s crash suffered only minor injuries and hope they make a full recovery,” said TLC Press Secretary Jason Kersten in a statement Tuesday.
“We have suspended the driver after coordinating with the NYPD, which is still investigating.”
Tom, the cabbie’s passenger from earlier on Saturday, said his own ride started going off the rails at around 9 a.m., when he claimed the driver took a wrong turn as she made her into the Hugh Carey Tunnel.
“I look up and she’s driving into the tunnel that goes over to Brooklyn and I’m like ‘oh whoa, you’ve taken the wrong turn,’” he said. “And she’s stopped just before the tunnel and I’m like you can’t stop here, you just got to go through now, you’ve committed, it’s one way.”
As she drove in the tunnel, Tom claimed the driver looked down at her phone and brushed against the cones that separate traffic on the roadway — before cutting across three lanes as they exited, despite not having her side mirror out.
Once they reached the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, Tom said he asked to get off at exits along the way to find a different ride, but the cabbie kept going, driving onto the Manhattan Bridge while again looking down at her phone for directions and “almost hitting the barrier,” he claimed.
When he finally got to his destination, Tom said he refused to pay the $30 fare, telling the cabbie “you almost killed us” — but “she locked the doors and wouldn’t let me out.”
The pair settled on a $20 fare, Tom said, adding that he called 911 to report the alleged reckless driver, and then phoned 311 on Sunday after he found out about the downtown crash.
The TLC spokesperson said the agency was looking into a 311 report filed Sunday. Tom said he spoke a TLC staffer on Tuesday about the report.
