Happy New Year! Pour the Local Beer!
Yes, it's the new year but what does it mean for Seattle and USA taxi? Is taxi a mere after thought, faded to disappear like the carrier pigeon, extinct and forgotten? Probably not, at least not in the bigger cities, though taxi much diminished but surviving. The real serious issue facing taxicab in 2025 are much higher insurance rates. State of Washington insurance rates for every kind of of insurance increased on average by almost 23 %. My last annual taxi insurance was more or less $5000.00. If I was still driving, I would be looking at about a $1,200,00 increase. In terms of taxi hours, that translates into 40 hours averaging $30.00 per hour; or 30 hours averaging $40.00 per hour. I use these figures as they were my usual take, depending on the day and business climate. As any honest cabbie will tell you, regardless of how much money they are making, good or bad, the grind, the wear and tear on the body catches up to you, which means higher insurance is a further economic burden. If insurance costs weren't so dire, I would consider starting a taxi company here in SW New Mexico, because one is needed but I would be paying the same rates as if I were owning cabs in Seattle or Chicago or New York. That isn't logical but does Progressive care? Of course not.
When You Are Not A Great Cabbie, You're In A Pickle, And for Howard Lev, That Was His Solution
Back in the early 1990s, I knew I a big lunkhead of a cabbie, Howard Lev. He was the typical case example of the dopy, alienated white American male attracted to America's Grand Marginal Industry, cab driving. But Howard, braggart Howard had a plan that was much smarter than Bigheaded Cabbies like me. He had a recipe for pickling Hungarian peppers and, wouldn't you know it, his "Mama Lil's Peppers" have overtaken the condiment world. They are on grocery shelves everywhere. In the Dec 12th, 2024 issue of the Seattle Times' Pacific magazine, there was the goofy Howard happy as a pickled pepper. Good for him. And call me a Big Sour Cucumber Pickle, jealous as a spicy pepper in a jar, looking on enviously from afar.
The Great Ford Crown Victoria
Taxi buddy Bill sent me link about a NYC Yellow Cab Crown Vic retired at 575,000 miles. The video showed that the car was in incredible shape. My last Crown Vic, starting at 103,000 miles, brought me up to over 450,000 miles before I retired it and sold it to a neighbor. I assume it is still running. It was burning a bit of oil on the original engine but still, on the highway I was still getting 20 miles per gallon.
Gasoline Prices for the New Year
Anyone in Seattle won't believe it but 2 days ago I filled up for $2.39 per gallon. Recently, the national average was just under $3.00. Despite GOP rhetoric, during Biden's last year in office, America's oil industry produced and sold more oil than ever before. Don't believe me? Look it up.
I Never Liked MV
MV took over the billing of King County's Metro account, which once was an incredible money producing account but MV destroyed it. In my last taxi months, I dropped it. And now recently, they have been months behind in paying accounts served. But the real culprit is KC Executive Dow Constantine, the great LIberal-I-Love-Everyone as long as everyone thinks I do. Where do these people come from? Ron Sims, Mr. Constantine? Heaven help the hard working cabbie!
New Year's Day First Ride Over the Mountains
A goal of every Seattle cabbie was to get that long ride east over the Cascades. Driving Farwest Taxi, my first one came on Jan 1st, 1989, taking a BN train crew over to Wenatchee, WA. Good fare. Over $200.00. I got caught in a blizzard coming back. Best part was the story the crew told about their last cabbie. He was such a bad driver they put him in the back seat and drove the cab themselves to Wenatchee. That was funny.
The Passing of a Once Chicago Cabbie
Most probably don't know but my friend Marty (Martin Crafts Campbell), who died this morning at 5:33 AM in Las Cruces, NM, at age 78, drove cab for a few months way back when in Chicago, something like 1968. He had a gun pulled on him. Rough place to drive a cab, Chicago. RIP Marty beneath that Toplight in the Sky.
