A green light means stop cab holdups

Kris Hill

Friday, March 2, 2001 | 1:31 a.m.

Fast Facts

For more information about the Green Ribbon Campaign, call Rosann Sidory at 593-1516.

A green light blinks repeatedly atop the "TAXI" sign on a cab parked in front of a Strip hotel. Tourists wandering by with their two-foot tall margaritas are probably unaware that light is a signal for help.

A blinking green light on top of a cab is a call for help, asking passersby to call the police.

Those green lights have been blinking more frequently after a rash of robberies and assaults have left a number of drivers injured or without a taxi.

Since Dec. 30 more than 18 cabbies have been robbed in the Las Vegas Valley. A search of robbery statistics showed there was an average of four cabdriver robberies a month last year.

During a string of robberies in a 24-hour period in January, two men would get into the cab and pull a knife on the driver. They would then let the driver out and steal the cab.

In most of the other cases, a driver would pick up a passenger at a downtown hotel, along the Strip or at McCarran International Airport. During the ride, the robber would pull a weapon, demand money, then flee the stopped cab with the cash.

The recent rash of crimes prompted Rosann Sidory to become concerned for the safety of her friend, Kathy Evans, a driver for Henderson Cab Co.

Sidory's concern led to the launch of the Green Ribbon campaign that she hopes will raise awareness about the safety of cabdrivers in the Las Vegas Valley.

"It's about all of the cabdrivers," she said. "It's just totally gotten out of control, and it's got to stop."

Holding up cabbies is a senseless act because a thief gets little money and it's hard to get away with a stolen cab for very long, she said, noting they're hard to hide.

"It's been happening on a daily basis now," Sidory said. And they are getting more violent, she said.

She has requested that local governments dedicate a day to cabdriver safety awareness and present proclamations of support to the Taxicab Authority, a state regulatory agency that oversees cab companies.

The Las Vegas City Council made a proclamation in a special ceremony Feb. 21, at which it also dedicated to cabdriver safety awareness. The North Las Vegas City Council is expected to do the same March 7, and the County Commission plans to declare March Cabdriver Safety Awareness Month at its meeting on Tuesday.

Henderson City Council will also dedicate Tuesday as Cabdriver Safety Awareness Day.

"I feel that the campaign has been successful because I've gotten a lot of phone calls," Sidory said. The Taxi Authority has been receiving calls from people requesting green ribbons, she said.

The more awareness the public has of the green lights, the better, she said. More people need to get involved.

Sidory is also giving away green ribbons to anyone who wants one. She wants everyone to tie one on their car antennas.

Evans, her cabbie friend, has one on her cab now.

Evans is glad that Sidory is concerned because she is also worried about her safety and the safety of her fellow drivers.

"I have never been so scared as I have been (the past few months)," Evans said. "This has got to stop before one of us gets killed."

Although she's never been robbed, Evans has several friends who have been, and she has many horror stories to pass along.

Evans said it's hard for cabdrivers to prepare for or respond to a dangerous situation because they aren't allowed to carry weapons, even a can of pepper spray.

"I feel the best weapon is our cab," she said -- and to give the robbers what they want, she said.

She hopes that Sidory's campaign to raise awareness will prevent more attacks.

"If people were more aware of our lights, maybe the police would be more on top of these robberies," Evans said.