COUNCIL TO REQUEST FUNDS FOR TAXI COUPON SERVICE

Disgruntled residents and a lack of adequate drivers for the city's taxi service didn't stop council members from requesting $170,545 from the Missouri Highway and Transportation Department.

The council Monday unanimously approved a resolution requesting grant funding from the state to help in operating the taxi coupon program. The city must match the grant funding dollar for dollar.

The grant requests the same amount of funding for the 1999-2000 year as was requested in 1998. A public hearing on the subject lasted 55 minutes.

Kelley Transportation Co. provides the taxi service to the city at a cost of $80,000. Residents can buy 14 coupons a month for the service. Coupons are available for $1 for elderly and $2 for other residents. The coupons are good for one-way trips within the city.

Councilman Melvin Gateley said he didn't object to the city's taxi coupon program, just to the delays that create complaints from residents.

Every year the council hears complaints from residents about the service. Mostly, people complain about having to wait for a cab.

For James Pelfrey that wait makes all the difference in whether he uses a cab or asks a friend for a ride. Pelfrey and his guide dog, Ranger, often have to wait an hour for a cab, and that makes it difficult to schedule appointments or get to work on time.

Because Kelley Transportation and the taxi coupon program are partially funded through the city, they should be held to a higher standard, Pelfrey said.

"If these were just isolated things I could live with it," he said. But they aren't. The problems with the company aren't just a lack of courtesy but also a lack of service.

"I don't know if Cape could support a public transportation service," Pelfrey said, "but options would be helpful."

Terrence Kelley, who owns the taxi company, has said he knows about the delays and is trying to eliminate them. He faces a driver shortage.

Kim Kelley, Terrence's wife, spoke at the hearing.

She said dispatchers often tell the callers how long of a wait they will have and try to be courteous and prompt. "We don't train them to be rude," she said.

But without enough drivers, there is no way to meet the demand for cabs, she said. Six drivers work a 12-hour day shift, which doesn't include the wheelchair accessible van. The service operates 24 hours a day.

If more drivers were available, then as many as 15 cars could be out on the streets transporting passengers, she said, adding: "We want to fill the transportation needs for the city."

However, with low unemployment rates, most people looking for jobs don't want to work the 12-hour shifts, she said. Some people will work only a day or two and then not show up again. Others don't have the prerequisites needed for insurance.

About 40 percent of the taxi service's business comes through the city coupons.

Nevertheless, providing quality public transportation is still a need in the city. Gateley said, "I think it's a need that we aren't satisfying very well at this point."

"We've been looking for alternatives but we aren't hearing anything," said Councilman Tom Neumeyer.

Cape Girardeau County officials have looked at a transit service for Jackson, Cape Girardeau and the county but have not come to any conclusions.

And even if the county were to adopt a transportation program, it won't change the taxi coupon service, said Mayor Al Spradling III. It would likely just supplement it.

The county's transit study addresses similar problems occurring in Jackson, Cape Girardeau and in the county. "But I don't think you'll find it as enlightening as we had hoped," Spradling said.