Taxi Cab Comedy

A former dispatcher from United Cab of Tampa Robert Bash has been trying to break into comedy for the last couple of years. Bash is from Pakistan (not really known for belly laugh humor) and goofs on his own culture and what it was like to be a cab driver in Tampa Florida. He used to have a routine with another driver, who went by the name "Mighty Whitey."

Good luck to anyone trying to better themselves and get out of a very depressed part of the country and try to make a real living.

Merry Christmas To All

I would like to extend a Merry Christmas to everyone who sees this blog and those who don't. The seasons, for me, are a time to reflect on my blessings, and imagine what is possible with my life.

All of us have gone through hard knocks. We just need to know there is a cosmic order that will somehow be with us during it all. Merry Christmas to all and a happy new year.

From the "Somebody up there likes me" category: At the United Cab Christmas dinner today I won the door prize. They said it was a gift certificate. it turned out that it was a $250 Visa card. How about that. Maybe somebody up there likes me after all. You could not have known that from the last few years.

Paul the shop foreman

Paul in his office

Paul is our shop foreman. Paul was with United Cab of Tampa a few years back, then went off to Alaska to hunt big game. He is a crack mechanic and a very nice guy. He is married with three children. Not only does he make out taxi's run good, he has some good stories to tell about Alaska.

In his office is a trophy of a a moose. Not too bad. They are very large animals and not for the faint of heart to hunt. I have heard that many first time hunters are afraid to shoot one because they think all they will do is piss it off. They may be right. Sarah Palin shot one when she was a girl with her father.

On the wall next to the mount are photos of the hunt. Alaska is a sportsman's paradise with fishing, hunting and camping unlike anything you will find in Florida.

Our boss, Mr. Rob Searcy is a deer hunter but even he will go up to Alabama and Georgia to hunt. I like to camp and hike, so the big game part of Florida does not interest me.

Pedro Says Hi To Larry, and hard times in the Tampa Taxi business

Pedro in the taxi cab

Pedro was a long time special for the now retired cab driver from Tampa Larry. I picked up Pedro the other day and he asked about Larry, and how he was doing. I had a nice chat with him on the way to his job that he still has after many years. I hope Larry sees this post and the cell phone photo of him. It was almost like old times, but not really.

The taxi business in Tampa the last few years have been very tough. I am not going to lie. I have a good day every now and then. But most of them are crap. I am hanging by a thread in all aspects of my life and may be facing homelessness. That is something I am trying to avoid.

With no vacation in five years, or a day off in three, I beaten and almost on the ground. I owe the company over $1,000 and that is the point they are letting the drivers go that owe that much.

It is just before Christmas and that would be a shitty time of year to get thrown to the curb. We are only days away from the good time of the year, and my life depends on this. I mean my life. I am too old to be walking down the street with just my clothes on my back knowing that I could be making money, but it was taken from me.

I am very much at the end of my rope. I have no clue what will happen to me. Oh well, I guess the sun will rise and shine and I will come up with something. It could be for the best. At least I am alive and breathing. There is something to be said for that.

The Storm Before The Calm

We may not see clouds like this until May 2012..I hope

The tropical system that is hanging around Florida should soon be out of here and leave nothing but great weather for the next several months. That, will also mean, money for the taxi drivers of Tampa. Things should be picking up this Saturday night with the Guavaween festival and parade. This used to be a real money maker for taxi drivers. In recent years it experienced a slump, as they took away aspects that people wanted

They are getting back to the more adult part of this festival that allowed the even to grow to over 100,000 people. When they tried to put a lid on bad behaviour, attendance dropped to 10,000. Go figure.

I will be out until the wee hours of the night. I really need the money. You have no idea.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers May Sell Out The Monday Night Colt Game

The best situation for a Tampa taxi driver is a sold out stadium. You simply get more action. More people go to the games and more people go to the sports bars to watch on television because the games are not blacked out. Cab drivers can make more money. That is what it is all about. 

I also believe the more any product is put in front of a possible customer base, the more tickets they will sell in the future. Success feeds on itself. The best thing about the Buccaneers going to London this season, is that game counts as a home game and it will be telecast. The things you have to do to avoid a blackout. 

Personally, I think the blackout rule is arcane and was invented in a time when most televisions were in black and white and people used rabbit ears to see only three channels. Today, with alternative media and internet, people can pick up streaming video of the blacked out game, and any other game they want to watch. There is just to much competition now for the NFL. They need to reconsider what they are doing and become more creative and developing fan bases.

 "Might the Tampa Bay community stain of blacked out Bucs games come to an end in 10 days when the Colts come here to face the Bucs on Monday Night Football?

Rick Stroud, of the St. Pete Times, apparently is hearing that good things are on the horizon, so he Twittered this morning.

@NFL Stroud - With a good week of ticket sales, Bucs Oct. 3 Monday Night Football game vs. the Colts will most likely be a sellout and televised locally

As Joe has written, there’s something dreadfully wrong if a “football town” with a good team can’t sell out a Monday Night Football game early in the NFL season. That might happen here, and Joe expects this will come down to 11th-hour sales. But Team Glazer really would be missing the boat if it didn’t do whatever needs to be done to make sure Monday Night Football is available for the many hundreds of thousands of locals who will sit home and watch it.

Joe’s desperately hoping it gets done by any means."

via www.joebucsfan.com

I was wondering how long this blackout would last. That would be nice on a national televised game, that we could sell out so the announcers will stop talking about how poor Tampa Bay sports fans are.

$1.89 in gas..poor customer service for United Cab of Tampa

I hope my first fare does not go very far; I have very little gas in the tank. I used dimes and pennies too buy gas this morning (my quarters are gone). After going three days without my blood pressure meds, a driver lent me the $4 to get it. I owe my company over $600 and my landlord $1,200 (he is ready to put me on the streets). I have been waiting two hours this morning but there are no calls. Every day they sign up more and more refuges from turd world countries to drive cab. "Yes we can." "Hope and change?" Life is so good right now.

I ran into 'Big Mike' today. He is a long time cab driver of over twenty years. He is not making a living. He tells me all of the old guys are not making a living. In fact, most of the taxi drivers in Tampa OWE money to the company. By rights, if the company just let the ones go, there would be a balance point of the correct number needed to sustain his market. The owner of this company does not see it this way.


He has not read the newspapers or watched cable news. He has no clue that he cannot expand and flourish in the economy. The tactic he is using is foolish, and in the long run he will have a weaker company for it. He should let his GOOD men make money, so that when things get better, he can hire the number he wants.We will have a larger customer base by then, and he will be richer becasue ot it.

He wants it now...there is no now...that may finally be sinking in.

If the 'Big Crash' hits. It will all sink. Those leases that are charged to drivers will have to come down, or the number of drivers will have to come down. Sorry, but that is an economic reallity.

Taxi Repair Job

The taxi I am driving has over 300,000 miles on it. The shop changes the oil every month as specified by the the owners manual. These cars will run for almost eternity. They do, however, start to use oil. That is what is happening with my cab.

The fare I picked up said they could smell oil burning. After I dropped them off, I checked the oil and I could see I needed at least one quart. Considering the oil had been changed last week, that meant I was burning oil. In the sixteen years I have been with United Cab of Tampa, I have never had a new car.

I see other drivers get a new car every year and I wonder why they treat me any kind of way. I need to ask Paul Hinton That. I would like to have a new taxi by the Fall time of the year.

You can see a taxi with its hood up at an Advance Auto Parts store on Dale Mabry is not good advertising for the cab company. We need to build up riders who have confidence in the ability of us to get them to where they are going.

Taxi Riders Like The New United Cab Dispatch Features

United Cab of Tampa has some new features on our high-tech dispatch system that people are really digging. When people call for a taxi they will receive a text message letting them know the cab number of the unit that is on its way. It even lets them know how far away it is (1.2 miles for example). As the taxi get closer, the customer gets another message telling them to come outside their taxi is turning onto their block. When the driver is on site, it will automatically do the call out for the driver. The customers like this; they like it a lot. In fact, if they have an 'I Phone' they can download a software that post a map of the city on their phone and allows them to follow the progress of the taxi in REAL TIME. Now how cool is that!

Just tonight, for example, on every call in the Hyde Park area I got, the fares were waiting outside as I arrived. They were waving at me. My hope is this will help increase our call count and customer loyalty. In the long run it should have a positive affect on the money we are making.

Now, when customers call Yellow Cab, they will think they have called "dial a prayer." They dial and pray they show up. After all, the customer has no information about if a Yellow Cab is actually on its way or not. This feature will be very effective in building up not only our club and party business, but in increasing our airport business that should feature prominently in taxi drivers portfolio.

United Cab is the only company anyone should call in Tampa. So when those Republicans come to Tampa next year, I hope they all use our service. They will have perfect information about how they will be served.

Not Much Going On In The Tampa Taxi Business - Except Corruption

74 miles in 12 hours

Taxi drivers need to drive over 100 miles a day to have a chance of making money. Lately, I am lucky to get 50-70 miles. I have never heard of that before. When you are only getting about 5-7 calls in a twelve hour period, you don't have much chance of making a living. The HCPTC had a meeting the other day about the state of the economy...Big deal. Stop letting the companies put on so many Goddamn drivers, and let some very poor people make a living. That would be the best thing you could do.

We don't have the money to give mortgages to people with no collateral loans like Michael J. Mosses (Owner of start up cab company who made his money off of ALF's like what Govenor Scott did) when he gave a $83,000 mortgage to Keven White as a mortgage (White was arrested by the FBI on corruption charges for receiving bribes from tow companies..I predict White will roll over big time to avoid prison).

What I hope is that the hobo drivers that think they have a job, need to go get a $7 an hour gig and they will be better off. They can then move out of their motel rooms and homeless shelters or stop sleeping in the back seat of the cabs.

Why does everyone want to be in the transportation business in Tampa? Why not open some other business and stop sucking the blood out of immigrants from third world countries. It sucks now, I now have nothing to lose.

United Cab Lot Full Of Taxi Cabs - Casey Anthony Moving To Tampa?

I went by the United Cab shop this afternoon to shop my cab #597 because I find it impossible to believe that I am not getting bids based on position. There must be something wrong with my cab and I was going to shop it. I know how to drive a cab; I have been driving one for 16 years and know all the 'hot spots' to sit and wait for a call. Youngbloods cannot  beat me at this game. That is why I think I must have a software issue with my taxi. I came across something on the lot that I did not expect when I was looking for a new cab to check out. The lot was overflowing with taxi cabs and all of them were dirty, and had no gas in the tanks.

That tells me that drivers have been quiting because they are not making any money. That is lost revenue for the company and they have done this to themselves. The economy is very bad and this company has never figured out that they could not go on an expansion campaign during the worst economy since the Great Depression. Historians will refer to this period in American History as the "Great Recession" and I could see clear evidence of that on the taxi lot today. Guys are suffering and giving this up. I could hardly find a place to park my taxi! I have never seen it like this.

I worked this morning from 5 to 8 and never got a call. In 16 years of driving I did not think that was possible. I was considering shopping my taxi under false conditions just to get a cab that had some gas in it until I got a little call that allowed me to 5bucks in the tank (enough for one run).

I will let you know tomorrow if it was just my computer. Who knows, if I make money with my new cab that seems to have a good functioning BlackBerry dispatch system, then I will be singing a different tune and loving life. I hope so; I need to be loving life.

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I always thought (for some reason) that the Casey Anthony murder trial was just a local Central Florida issue. It has been all over the local news, and involved people that live in Florida. The jury was picked from the Tampa Bay Area and they only had to go to Orlando (87 miles from Tampa). However, it seems the entire country has been following this case and all of the major cable news outlets. Today, I heard that Vivid entertainment withdrew the offer they had for Casey of one million dollars to do a pornographic film. Vivid succumbed to public outrage, and withdrew the offer. I guess even the porn industry has standards. I suggest she move to the Tampa Bay area where the jury pool was picked. At least she has 12 friends she can lean on. There are jobs at day care centers where she can work. I understand she has real maternal instincts. She can even get a job at Untied Cab as a dispatcher! How cool would that be?

Things Are Very Bad Right Now

Its not only slow; its very hot in the Florida sun

What is going on now in the taxi business in Tampa is not just having "a bad day." Most drivers are getting somewhere between two to five calls a day. That's it. "Don't worry, it will be better tomorrow." a customer told me. I am worried.  Each day is just the same. For example, this morning I came out at Five a.m. and did not get a call until Nine. There has never been a time when a driver during the morning hours would not get a call for over 4 hours.

The new dispatch system is inherently unfair. If you are not close to a call, it will not give you one, nor will it even send you a f*****g bid. Without the bid, I cannot make any money. Paul Hinton says I simply need to park my cab where the calls are going to come out. How in the hell do I do that? The calls could come out from anywhere. I have no psychic abilities, so I guess I am screwed.

Talking to Paul Hinton and Eddie Munster (the computer guy) has proved useless. They don't even know what the algorithms are set at or the parameters of how it will give out a call. Paul just says that one day he will call the main office and find that out. Great! That will do me a lot of good while I STARVE!

The only reason I have not left United Cab to go to Yellow Cab is that I am in the Lighthouse program for the blind school children. After that, I am on my way to a company that will put me to work and provide me with business. I am ready to work and I  need to work. With my years of experience, I will be an asset to any company that wants a quality driver, not just someone that can fog a mirror.

Tampa At Night And Back Up And Running

I have had a tough week. The change of weather and the drop off in business has not been good. I ran into Big Mike the other day at the shop. He still thinks night taxi driving is the way to go but he does admit there are many Yellow cabs out in the So-Ho area and camping out at the Hyde Park Cafe and McDinttons. You have to pick your shots and be ready to roll on calls The new computer GPS dispatch will give you the mileage of any call you bid on. This is good. However, the best part is you can actually get to the call because of light traffic at night. Did you know that the Florida Highway Patrol estimates that 60% of the drivers on the road on a Saturday night have alcohol in their system. Man, I would not have thought that.

There May Be A Meter Raise For Taxis In Tampa

United Cab Taxi Meter

Paul Hinton told me today that there was a meeting with the Transportation Commission Of Hillsborough County and they are considering a raise on the drop from $2.00 to $3.00. I think this is necessary so that the taxi drivers who have to buy their own gas can make a living. This small amount could be the difference of being able to run the cabs or park them. There is a breaking or tipping point and we are almost there. I am glad that the companies are recognizing this.

There will not be a raise on the per mile charge or the waiting time. I believe on the drop is the right way to go.

The Economic Reality Of Taxi Driving In Tampa Florida

Taxi Drivers in the holding area at Tampa International Airport

The St. Petersburg Times ran an article about the state of taxi cab companies and drivers in Hillsborough County. They quoted me (Tim Fasano) in the article because of this blog. I believe the article hit hard on some very real aspects of the current state of cab driving. 

Jack Nicas went all over Tampa talking with taxi drivers and cab company owners. He went to the holding area at the airport, the major hotels downtown, the club party areas on the weekends and he saw first hand what goes on in our work. This is what he saw at Tampa International Airport.

"For hours under the sun in a lot near Tampa International Airport, a harsh course in economics plays out.
Dozens of taxicabs snake into a queue. Men shout and engines start. The line barely budges.
Rene Jeune is up front now, having waited two hours for one customer. Farther back, Jean Bourdeau watches birds fight. He has just $25 in his pocket for five hours of work.
A few men play cards. Others read. Some doze off.
All tell a similar tale: They work 80-hour weeks, yet take home what a waiter earns in tips — about $200 to $300. Some are said to be homeless, sleeping in their cabs and living for their next fare.
This is the taxi business in Hills­borough County." via www.tampabay.com

Unlike waiters, many taxi cab drivers are barely able to survive. This was not the case before the recession. The economy was good then. That is why I stayed with it for so many years. When the Great Recession hit OUR EXPENSES REMAINED THE SAME AND EVEN WENT UP! 

There is no other way to say it-United Cab use to have a call count of over 2,000 on weekdays, and over 3,000 on weekends. There are days now when we don't crack 700, and with 262 cabs, you figure that out. 

We need the meter to be raised so we can recoup what we have lost. In other business (even transportation) they pass the cost off to the customer. However, with taxi leasing companies, the driver is the customer and we bare all burdens and cost. 

You would think that a cab company would want all of its drivers to prosper and be successful. I believe that if they marketed the company to increase the base line of customers over time. The drivers and the company would all share in a cash party. However, when accountants run companies, their shortsightedness becomes contagious, and whatever visionary may be at the helm, he will shortly be converted by a spreadsheet.

"In 1967, the manager of the only cab company in town told the Tampa Taxicab Commission his drivers made about $112 per week. Adjusted for inflation, that's $742 in today's dollars.
Drivers were employees then, with health insurance, vacations and bonuses, city records show. But in 1975, the Yellow Cab Co. jumped on a national trend and made its drivers independent contractors. The agreement cost cabbies their benefits but let them keep whatever they made.
At the time, Yellow Cab manager Nick Cambas told the Tampa Times: "This should be the answer to those squawking about the little man not having a chance to make it in business."
Thirty-six years later, the little man still awaits his chance.
Drivers today say the system leaves them poor and at risk. Their predicament is compounded by a lack of choices: Two companies control 87 percent of the county's permits.

via www.tampabay.com

Adjusted earnings have not followed the taxi cab drivers nationwide that work on a lease system. All the major cities (except Las Vegas) use a lease system. Most of their drivers struggle to make a subsistence living. I can deal with being poor but as I get older, it would be nice to have some health insurance or Workman's compensation. If I am injured in a car accident today, I have no coverage. I have no pension or retirement. I have nothing, and I am one of the better drivers with over sixteen years experience.

I thought Obamacare would cover me but it will only cover the employees of the cab company. They call that "a prohibited cost" so they will pass that on to the drivers and raise our leases again forcing us to work 16 hours a day 7 days a week. With the price of gas, where is the tipping point?

When the economy collapsed a few years ago, drivers say they shouldered the burden. Their customers vanished, but the companies prospered. With unemployment rising, more people decided to give taxi driving a try, which meant more revenue for the companies.
"There was no concession on their part," said Tim Fasano, a United Cab driver who blogs about the industry. "Times have never been better for them. They have more drivers than before the recession and they're getting higher leases now."
Yellow and United managers say lease prices increased because they invested in better dispatching technology.
They also dispute drivers' claims of poverty-line earnings and say their business model is not as profitable as depicted. Their overhead and risk is high, they say. Searcy says Gulf Coast can't fill all its cabs and is "barely paying our bills." Yellow Cab co-owner Louie Minardi said Yellow isn't far behind.
But the most recent statement of income for either company on file with the commission show Yellow Cab reported $451,211 in profits for the first half of 2006.
The company filed for bankruptcy just four years earlier.
via www.tampabay.com

 One thing that I will never understand and my experience in life still leaves me with no reference point to make a judgement, is why do so many grown men continue to work under these circumstances? I am one of them but I truly believed that over half these guys would quit when the recession took hold. That does not seem to be the case. They know how many hours they will have to work and that kids at MacDonald's make more money. Are they just a collection of little boys? 

Many of them do come from third world countries so they have adapted to poverty and seem to have a real tolerance for it. They just keep driving every waking minute of their lives. Many  have died and they still keep going. I will never understand that. 

I do want this stated for the record: The old manager of United Cab was fired a few months ago and Rob Searcy and Paul Hinton took over. They have a completely different management style. They are very accessible and Paul keeps his door open at all times so any driver can walk in and state whats on his mind without any fear of reprisal. That could not have happened under the old regime. These new managers are what I call "drivers managers." I have not seen moral this high in years. The new GPS dispatch system has been a blessing. I know many drivers have had issues. I have not. I can't wait to the Fall time of the year because I just may be able to go on the Camping/fishing trip I have wanted too for years. 

The System Finally Seems To Be Working

It was a very busy day today and all of my calls came off of the BlackBerry. I know some guys don't like this system, like Big Mike but it seems to be doing its job. I am not a stunt or junk driver. I just post up and roll. It only takes me a few minutes now to get a call. I can't wait till next holiday season to win back some of the cab business we lost last  year. Life moves on, so will we.

Where Does The Tampa Taxi Business Go From Here?

December 16th, 2010 The Taxi Strike

I am referring to the drivers, not the owners. The people that own the businesses are doing very well. The drivers have been struggling for the last four years as we have shouldered the load. What we need is a healthy economy to make real money, but none seems to be in sight. There is a glimmer of hope, however.

United Cab Of Tampa has finally got the digital dispatch system up and running. Today I received a software update and my rate 2 and rate 3 on the taxi meter for the minimum and flat rate airport zones. The system is working for me but I have heard many complaints from drivers. I stated before that this system will put the hood stretchers and the sandbaggers and the guys used to being fed out of business. Those seem to be the ones complaining.

Mr. Rob Searcy (seen in the video below at the taxi protest) was the one that implemented the new computer system. The old management would never have done that. I really believe in the long run good times will come back to the taxi business, only at United Cab, however. The other companies are to dysfunctional and not on the ball. United will rule the day and their drivers will make a ton. Just wait for a healthy economy.

Before I had met Rob Searcy I shot this YouTube video of him addressing the taxi drivers at the "strike" last December. I knew we were dealing with a strong man.

United Cab Is Raising Leases On Taxi Drivers

This was posted on the window at United Cab today

I would love to think that the recession is over; I would love to think that the events in the Middle East are not happening: I would love to think that the introduction of this new computer system has not destroyed our customer base. I would love to think that Lady Ga Ga is my girlfriend. Not so. Sometimes you have to deal with reality.

The reality is my expenses to run my little business are reaching the breaking point. Now that United Cab of Tampa is raising the lease they charge their independent contractors to run the taxis, now that gas may go to five dollars a gallon by summer, and now that our call count is at a historical low level for this time of year, the situation is becoming unmanageable. Like Carley Sheen says "you have to accept what you can't control."

It should be the good time of year to make money - it is not. I guess I am just an independent contractor with no control. Did you notice the 24 hour driver lease  of $102 is PAYABLE BY 8 AM. Talk about hard ball.

I hope in the long run this makes me a better cab driver. This guy Rob Searcy is one tough guy. I do respect him. He told me that this new computer system should raise my production by over 30%. If that is true in the long run, I love this guy. None of this will mean anything because I will be making money. He will run this business and make money for the owners and drivers in the long term....I really hope. In that capacity, he is an awesome manager. I just wish he and Ft., Lauderdale would read the newspapers more often...Perhaps in six months I will be doing well and not care about any of this. Stay tuned.

United Cab System May be A Piece Of Crap

This is what "Big Mike" had to say..

yes mr. fasano this could be great;but what you don't understand is the lack of preparation for the driver and the inadequate software that this application offers.there is no continuous update of available fares with easy access;the foolish size of the zones;the danger of using the blackberry while driving;the endless rebooting or checking to see your check in position. yes I am not the only one experiencing be kicked out of my check in position.it is a shame the cheap ass company could not use a real computer set up instead of this bogus piece of crap. your good day as mine was are experience. when the inept have a chance to figure this out you will think differently. not to be able to get your check in call in the correct order is b.s.what the stupid system does is force drivers to sit on calls and not roam for fear of being out of position since it does not dispatch in order.this is why you are seeing cab drivers schooling like a group of sharks on a school of bait. no my dear friend the yellow computer is vastly superior and if they would use their true gps capabilities ,would even be better.think about this tim :drivers avoiding calls because of this pooling affect.you don't have to be a rocket scientist to take advantage of these faults.I actually thought you could see the deficiencies but i was wrong.good luck.and by the way how many times have you had to waist time rebooting, or the credit card machine doesn't work, or you loose your bluetooth connection. i could go on endlessly.yeah tim you stepped in s--t for a short period of time.the only thing good about the system if it truly works will be putting the hood stretchers out of business. it's up to the co. to discipline ha!ha!

Working Out The Bugs

I can thank Shoe and the Blackberry for this wad of cash

Yes, there are a few bugs to work out but Ft. Lauderdale has their techs up here taking care of that. In the mean time, we have some of the best dispatchers found in the business. Shoe was at his best today as he took care of drivers problems and kept the orders flowing. It was a literal cash party today and the tires on my cab did not stop. This was like it was years ago before the recession took hold. I can't wait till tomorrow.

With this system you have perfect knowledge. You know were the calls are at when they hit the board. You do not have to sit ten minutes for a dispatcher to come back from a break, or fight against hood stretchers, or get beat by a cab that just showed up out of nowhere, or wait for six other cabs to leave a stand....you can go out and make your own way and to hell with anyone else.

Good time are here.  There is no cab company in the Tampa Bay area that can provide the service we can. If you were a fuck up and got fired by United and are now trying to make it with some sorry ass cab company because you refuse to dig ditches or clean trash cans (work you are more suited for) you are now on the short  end of the stick. Have a good life taxi losers.