WEST BEND, Wis. — Eric and Jacqueline Prodoehl say they have dealt with five late taxi pickups this summer — a problem that has grown increasingly difficult for the couple, who do not drive due to health issues.
WATCH: West Bend couple living with disabilities frustrated with city's taxi service
"It's very stressful," Eric said. "It's not fun when we can't get picked up at the correct timing."
The couple contacted TMJ4 News after experiencing repeated delays with West Bend's city taxi service.
Because neither drives, a late or unaccounted-for taxi leaves them with few options and no information.
"We don't get notified or anything," Eric said. "So we have to get the taxi supervisor involved to see what's going on."
Jacqueline said the issues extend beyond late arrivals.
"Sometimes they get us late and sometimes dispatchers are crabby with us," she said. "We ask where the driver is and they say, 'Well it's dispatched already!' But they sometimes they don't tell us where the driver is."
The couple relies on the taxi service to reach work, doctors' offices, and the grocery store. Other transportation options are significantly more expensive — a Lyft from their home to work costs between $18 to $30 per trip depending on the time and day, while the city taxi costs $5.50.
Walking is not a practical alternative, either. Jacqueline said their street sees heavy, fast-moving traffic.
"If we could we would walk places more, but the traffic is not too good," she said. "Other drivers speed and they don't for pedestrians."
Eric hopes the situation leads to broader improvements.
"Hopefully, with the city and the board [they] will help the city taxi... try to get more drivers to help drive the taxis," he said. "Or do something so there are more improvements that will help make the issues better and smoother down the road."
The city said its records show the Prodoehls have filed one complaint — from January. Both the city and its contracted taxi company provided statements saying they are looking into the couple's complaints.
The City of West Bend wants to ensure that residents who rely on taxi services have access to a reliable transportation option for their everyday needs. The City did hear from the Prodoehls in January, shortly after the transition to a new service provider went into effect but has not received additional concerns since then. When this latest matter was brought to our attention, we reached out to Running Inc. directly. We will continue to gather information to determine whether this is an isolated incident or part of a larger pattern. As always, we appreciate residents bringing concerns to our attention and welcome the opportunity to identify ways we can better serve our community.
West Bend Shared Ride Taxi is a on-demand public transit option for the community of West Bend. It our goal to have all riders picked up within 30 minutes of the requested time. There can be times when the demand is high and in return cause a longer wait than we strive for. We are consistently monitoring high demand times and addressing staff scheduling as needed.
While we are not experiencing a driver shortage, we are continuing to hire drivers for peek times to meet the communities needs.
Our phone system records all calls, when a rider shares an experience, we review the call and will use the recording to re-train as necessary. It is important to us that customers are treated respectfully.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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