Study no surprise to taxicab drivers

Bob Shemeligian

Tuesday, July 9, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

No kidding.

That was the reaction of local taxicab drivers to a government study that they are the most likely victims of workplace violence.

"I could have told you that months ago," said Dick Kawadler, editor of Trip Sheet, a taxicab trade magazine.

The study, released Monday by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, indicates that driving a cab is the nation's riskiest job, with 86 drivers killed in 1994.

In Las Vegas, where several cabbies have been killed in recent years, driver safety has been a key concern.

In November, the state Taxicab Authority approved several regulations that give drivers more ways to protect themselves, such as allowing drivers who fear for their safety to refuse fares, installing interior latches inside trunks to allow drivers who have been taken hostage to escape, and requiring drivers to take mandatory safety classes.

Driver Sven Nilsson said these measures are all well and good but the sad fact remains that nationwide "a cabby is nine times more likely to be killed from violence than from injuries sustained in an automobile accident."

Kawadler, who has unsuccessfully campaigned for video cameras to be installed in each cab, lamented that a lonely cab driver still represents "the easiest source of income to a drug addict for rock cocaine, and this presents a very dangerous situation to drivers because these people are not rational."

But others in the industry questioned whether video cameras would do any good.

"A camera helps after the crime has been committed," said Raul Iaciofani, a driver for Yellow Cab Co. "I would like to see more cooperation on the part of the police. Instead of writing us up for minor infractions, I think they could help us by looking out for our safety."

Iaciofani explained that in his native city of Buenos Aires, Argentina, offices routinely stop cabs on city streets and pat down passengers for weapons. As a result, potential assailants who know they could be apprehended during a routine stop avoid cabs.

Paul Nelson, a 37-year-old driver for Star Cab Co., said all the police work and safety equipment in the world does not measure up to the effectiveness of a driver's common sense.

"Being able to size up a situation and to be able to reason with people can serve as an excellent deterrent," Nelson said.

Ricky McGee, a driver for Whittlesea Blue Cab Co., agreed.

"You have to pay attention," McGee said. "You have to observe the actions and behaviors of people who are going to get into your cab. Simply doing that can help keep you safe."

Several Las Vegas drivers have said publicly that they should have the right to carry concealed weapons.

McGee laughed at this notion.

"First of all, an assailant who thinks a driver is armed is surely going to use a weapon," McGee said. "Secondly, can you imagine what would happen when people would try to run out on a fare? You could have a shootout at the OK Corral."

Scott Hill agreed that carrying weapons might not be a good idea, but he still would like to see more done to help protect drivers.

"It's getting a little too rough out there," said the 26-year-old driver for Yellow Cab.

Hill speaks from experience.

On June 26, a passenger grabbed Hill's head and wrenched it backward, pinching a nerve in his neck, and putting him out of work for at least six weeks.

"The guy wasn't rational," Hill said. "He was yelling about his mother, and I guess I was the closest one to him. ... "

The assailant was arrested, and later ruled mentally incompetent to stand trial.