Cab rides in Milwaukee would increase $1.25, under a measure endorsed today by a Common Council committee looking to help drivers offset record-high gas prices.

The increase going to the full Common Council for action Tuesday would boost the fare for the first one-eighth of a mile, essentially the cost to slide into the cab, from $2.25 to $3.50. In addition, the hourly charge for waiting on customers would bump up from $15 to $24 an hour.

The fare increase on the initial one-eighth of a mile won consensus from the Public Safety Committee, which had considered two other alternatives: a $1 fuel surcharge or a 25-cent increase in the charge per one-eighth of a mile.

Committee Chairman Bob Donovan said the measure to boost the initial fare charge would be a temporary relief for drivers. He advocated that the council create a permanent taxicab review board to regulate fees on a more regular basis.

The waiting charges, for example, have not been increased since the 1980s.

Several cab operators advocated for the fare increases to help them stay on the road with gas prices around $4.10 a gallon.

"We're not talking about putting a few bucks in the taxicab drivers' pockets," said Leon Vasserwan. "We're talking about survival of the taxicab business."

Bennie Lewis told the committee he spent $30 a day on gas for his cab in January. That daily tab has increased to $53.

"We need help real bad," he said.

http://www.jsonline.com/watch/?watch=1&date=6/27/2008&id=42329