“It ain’t New York City, but Oak Harbor is once again a two-taxi-company town. Whidbey Island native Edwin Adamson recently started an Oak Harbor-based cab company called Whidbey Island Taxi Service. Between the population growth, transit cuts and gas prices, he said it seems like a great time to start a fledgeling taxi business.It’s not a completely new company, since Adamson bought out Fred’s Taxi to start the business. The deal consisted mainly of some radios and four cabs that are too old to use, he said. Adamson promised that his version of the business will be run differently than Fred’s Taxi, which ran into trouble with police over insurance and other issues. Fred’s Taxi owner Fred Thurmond spared the city from having to yank his taxi license by announcing he was going out of the cab business at a January City Council meeting.Right now Adamson’s cab company consists of two little 1990 Hondas, an express van and 10 drivers. His son-in-law, J.R. Bissitt, is acting as the overseer of the operation.The philosophy behind the business, Bissitt said, is quick response and strong customer service. Our drivers will help with bags. If it’s raining, they’ll get out and hold an umbrella, he said. Whatever it takes.Whidbey Island Taxi Service will complete with Harbor Taxi, which has been giving islanders rides since 1947. Justin Burwell took over the business, which has been in his family for 47 years, from his mother after she died in 1998.In contrast to Adamson’s fuel-efficient cabs, Burwell said Harbor Taxi runs with full-size, half-ton Chevrolet and Ford stationwagons because of safety concerns. A couple years ago he said a cab was rear-ended by a pickup moving at 65 mph, but neither the passenger nor the driver were injured. That sold him on larger cars. But with the gas prices, Burwell said he might have to inch fare prices up soon.Right now, the fares the two companies charge are pretty close to one another, though they have different fee systems. The Harbor Taxi cabs are equipped with meters set at $1.40 to start with, plus $1.40 a mile. Adamson said his taxis don’t have meters, so his drivers will figure fares based on a rate schedule. He said the rate schedule is based on the same $1.40 usage fee plus $1.40 a mile.A one-way ride to Coupeville from Oak Harbor, for example, will cost $15 from either cab company.It’s a tough business, Burwell and Adamson said, with small profit margins, high insurance costs and miles or red tape to wade through. But both companies seem to be in it for the long haul and have plans to grow.If it works out well, Adamson said, maybe in the future we’ll put a car in Coupeville or maybe Clinton.The fares for the new Whidbey Island Taxi Service and Harbor Taxi are nearly identical, although one charges set rates for rides to various destinations, and the other charges by the mile. Here’s a look at fares for one passenger:Navy base to downtown: $6Main base to Seaplane base: $7Oak Harbor to Coupeville: $15Oak Harbor to Greenbank: $25Oak Harbor to Langley: $35Oak Harbor to Clinton: $45Oak Harbor to Anacortes: $25Oak Harbor to Seattle: $100”