https://www.echolive.ie/corknews/Cork-taxi-drivers-outrage-at-puking-passengers-ac65968d-8632-446d-ae71-3cf295a92c0b-dsA CORK taxi driver has been left outraged by passengers vomiting in his vehicle and costing him days off the road.
Taxi driver Bobby Lynch’s anger was sparked again last Saturday when a woman in her thirties got sick and destroyed the back of his taxi, he said. The incident occurred just a week after he had purchased a new car.
“The lady was rolling her window down,” he said.
“I asked her if she wanted me to pull over but she kept saying she was fine. Soon after that, she puked her heart up. Her husband turned to her and asked why she hadn’t let us pull over. She didn’t know what the problem was and told her husband ‘it’s just a taxi’.
“I lost it after that. To some people, this might be just a taxi but it’s also my livelihood.”
This isn’t the first time Bobby had his taxi destroyed by vomit.
“There was one guy who actually vomited down the back of my neck after a night out. That’s how bad it can get.”
Despite his anger, Bobby always ensures that his passengers make it home.
“If I kick them out all I’m doing is passing the problem onto another taxi driver.”
He spent the next day attempting to clean up the mess on Sunday.
“I wasn’t able to work the next day. The seats had to be unscrewed. I had to clean out the car four times and will still need to get it valeted to fully get rid of the smell. That was five hours cleaning when I could have been out working.”
It’s not just vomiting that taxi drivers are subjected to.
“I’ve found burgers and curry chips stuffed under the seats. In these situations, I normally post them through the passenger’s letterbox.
“All I’m doing is giving them back what they used to destroy my car. A lot of taxi drivers I know do the same.”
Bobby said he has faced a number of more serious incidents over the years.
“I’ve had some narrow escapes driving taxis. It’s a difficult job at times. If people disrespect us we still have to show respect for them. If we say anything wrong we could lose our license. We’re on our own.”
He urged people to have respect for taxi driver attempting to earn a decent living.
“Not everyone is like this. I have a lot of people in my taxi who are very respectful. Some will comment on the clean condition of your car,” said Bobby. “As a taxi driver, I take a lot of pride in that.”
