

Gene Brady, a driver for 19 years, said his average tip has dropped from $3 to $2. "Now you're lucky to do one, and you have to hustle." "You used to do two to three trips an hour," said Greg Bambic, president of the nonprofit Professional Drivers Association.
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The lackluster economy dominates cabby chatter, and the latest Trip Sheet explains how to slash personal expenses. "These drivers looked at Las Vegas as a pot of gold," said Lynn Pierson, publisher of Trip Sheet, an industry magazine.īut in December, according to the Taxicab Authority, revenue was down almost 14 percent from the same period in 2007, and the number of trips plummeted 20 percent. The average salary for a cabby is about $27,000, according to federal estimates, although some say unreported tips push it far higher. "If they go somewhere else, I've just been robbed."īut the cabbies view the handouts as a lifeline - particularly in a recession.Ĭlark County's taxi industry grew steadily from 2001 to 2007, with nearly $320 million in revenue in 2007, the Nevada Taxicab Authority said. "My advertising dollars get them in the cab and then a driver says, 'Oh, it's burned down' or 'The girls are ugly,'" Beard said. Packing the clubs has become more important than ever. Some places are paying $70.īusiness is off about 15 percent, Beard said. The clubs pay up to $200,000 a month to cabbies, who bring in a third of their guests, he said.īeard said paying the cabbies $20 a passenger hasn't been enough to compete for a dwindling pool of customers.

Larry Beard spends $10,000 a week marketing the clubs that filed the lawsuit they're owned by the same company and offer nude dancers but no alcohol. A hearing on a defendant motion to dismiss the case is scheduled for March. "The clubs are being shaken down," said Neil Beller, an attorney for Deja Vu Showgirls and Little Darlings, which recently sued rivals that pay cabbies more.
