Letter: Cameras in cabs are essential to protect drivers

Thursday, Aug. 26, 2004 | 8:54 a.m.

Taxicab drivers are three times more likely than police officers or firemen to die on the job, yet we would never expect policemen or firemen to perform their duties without all the safety equipment available to their departments. On the other hand, cab drivers have no protection whatsoever from robberies and assaults.

Keith Schwer, executive director of UNLV's Center for Business and Economic Research, which is in the process of conducting yet another study on the subject of cameras in cabs, states, "This unfortunate incident (the death on Tuesday of a cabdriver who was set aflame during an alleged robbery attempt) says we have to go forward on this issue."

Other parts of the country have shown that cameras in cabs deter crime and assist in identifying perpetrators of crimes against drivers. A survey has already shown that the majority of Las Vegas drivers want cameras in their cabs.

Yet the Taxicab Authority board continues to stonewall while cabbies drive their 12-hour shifts and hope they don't pick up the wrong person. It's time that the safety of the drivers be deemed as important as the safety of police and firefighters.

PATRICIA DUCHARME