By Ben Joravsky
As the drivers see it, they have the worst of two worlds. They’re convenient targets–scapegoats, really–for politicians looking to score easy points with the public, particularly the black community. And they’re a good source of revenue. “We’re a cash cow,” says Johnny Holmes, who lives on the south side. “Want to raise some money? Slap a fee or a fine on the driver. No one knows, no one cares. Except the drivers–and who listens to us?”
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Daley and Shoenberger contend that drivers are generally avoiding low-income neighborhoods, and to remedy the problem the city instituted something known as the one-call-a-day program, which requires drivers to respond to one call every day from someone living in an underserved neighborhood. If they don’t comply they can lose their license. The neighborhoods that qualify as underserved include roughly everything north of Devon, west of Ashland, and south of Roosevelt. “It’s the craziest scheme I ever did hear,” says Holmes. “And you want to know why? Because there’s not enough calls coming in from those underserved neighborhoods. They say we have to answer a call a day–and there’s not a call a day coming in. What kind of lunatic figured that one out? How are you gonna get a call a day if there ain’t a call a day coming in? It’s just another way to fine us–that’s all that is.”
It’s ironic, say the drivers, that the city’s fining them for not driving in poor neighborhoods, given that the CTA has cut back crucial service in Pilsen, Little Village, and other working-class areas. “They want us to be like bus drivers, going all over the city, but they don’t want to pay us bus drivers’ wages,” says Wiedersberg. “If they’re so worried about service in those communities, why don’t they bring back the CTA lines that they cut?”
Second, the city and the cab companies aren’t contributing to the insurance plans, as most private employers do. “I can’t stand it when they tell reporters how they gave us workmen’s comp,” says Holmes. “They didn’t give us nothing! We’re paying for it. It takes $4.50 a day right out of our pocket. And who really benefits? Not the cabbies. It’s probably all some sort of sweet deal for the insurance company.
They caucused incessantly, often at the Rainbow. They weren’t sure exactly what they wanted, but they knew something had to change. They were tired of all the fees and fines and the lack of respect. They wanted the city to take their complaints seriously.
The program, she explains, is for disabled people. “We have had so many complaints from people who are visually impaired or in wheelchairs that cabs routinely pass them by. I heard of one case where the driver said he would take the person but not the Seeing Eye dog. We get complaints from people who say the cabs won’t come to their neighborhoods–and we’re talking about nice neighborhoods with manicured lawns. There are customer bases out there that are untapped. These would be a new source of revenue for drivers. I would imagine that the goal of any good businessman is to expand their customer base.”
