Buffalo, NY (WBEN) Former Erie County Executive Joel Giambra is joining the Liberty Cab team as Chief Operating Officer.
"I hope to build on the very successful business that has been created over the last 42 years in my new role with Buffalo-based Liberty Cab," says Giambra. Liberty founder and president Bill Yuhnke has named Giambra, who has previously worked as an advisor, to take the wheel of the second largest taxi company in the state outside of New York City, saying "I believe Joel Giambra, with his experience as a chief executive and in politics as well as in business development, brings the right credentials to his new position with Liberty. I am looking forward to working with him and my daughter, Lisa, in the coming days. It is an exciting time."
Giambra worked with Yuhnke in trying to level the playing field with ridesharing companies. "It was a battle [deregulation] that needed to be waged and it was very difficult given the money and the political influence wielded by the technology companies," said Giambra. "But under Bill's leadership, much has been accomplished and many of the regulations holding down the taxi industry in the city have been removed, helping to level the playing field. I hope to build on that forward momentum and continue to improve the ground transportation industry."
Giambra has a goal in mind. "As COO of Liberty, I will be pursuing new business development opportunities and exploring ways to improve customer experience," says Giambra. "One of the areas we will be exploring is to improve the conditions for our drivers and to professionalize our drivers as we look to enhance customer experience when they use our services. I am definitely excited about this new challenge and am ready to hit the ground running with several ideas in mind to build on Liberty's success."