It’s Friday night at the bar. Your boyfriend has just finished his hiccup-filled rendition of AC/DC’s “Back in Black”. You’re out of smokes, and Jägermeister is dripped down the front of your favorite white hoodie. The bartender is shooting dirty looks, and the bathroom has a line a mile long.



Yep, it’s the end of the night.



Time to get home.



You dig through your purse to find your keys, but wait, you flashback to the last two Duck Fart shots you took on a stomach of Long Islands and PBRs and decide to dig farther and find your cell phone. That’s it. A good old cab ride home. Yeah, there’s a wait, and it’s a little cold, but you just grab that cute, equally drunk boyfriend of yours for a little warmth.



Sound familiar?



We’ve all been there. Only some of us didn’t make it past the keys. We chose to get in the car and drive. In fact, last year over 40,000 Washingtonians acquired DUI charges. The penalties for a first-timer? Minimum fine of $825 to maximum fine of $5,000, 90 days license suspension and five years probation.



Yikes! The man breathing down your neck for five years? No thanks.



Thank God for cab drivers.



In Olympia, there are four ways to get safely home.



DC Cab is the oldest of the four and has been locally owned and operated since 1995. It’s your typical cab company and well established. DC Cab is open seven days a week and caters to the needs of grocery getters and night-lifers.



Speedy Cab and Ready Cab run along the same lines with 24-hour service and reasonable rates.



And the lowest-priced, newest cab on the Ave is Olympia Cab Company.

I met up with Oly Cab’s proprietor, Chester Baldwin, downtown at McCoy’s Tavern — his choice. Dressed in a button up, light blue, striped shirt, Baldwin is just off his day job as a lawyer. I’m a little thrown off by the tucked in shirt and dress shoes, but his smile and laid-back demeanor counter the serious attire. He orders a soda and settles in to tell me his story.



Business man by day partier by night, Baldwin’s inspiration to start his own cab company was based on his experiences with DUI cases and his disappointments with trying to catch cabs in Olympia.



He remembers many an occasion at the end of the night when the news of having to wait over an hour for a cab ride would hit him. Then the familiar dilemma.



“Do I wait forever for a cab or just drive home? It’s a terrible decision to have to make,” says Baldwin, shaking his head.



So the decision Baldwin made instead was the one to provide a much needed service to the people of Olympia. With the help of his two brothers, Ben and Stephen, Olympia Cab Company was born.



It’s the taxi with a twist.



Maybe it’s because they’re young, smart and like to party, or maybe it’s just because they’re lucky, but the Baldwin brothers know how to run their business.

Besides having sweet rides (matching SUVs), Oly Cabs offers an in-vehicle snack bar (everything is a buck), GPS system (to help you find that after-hours party), pickup arrangement and confirmation via text messaging (who likes yelling on a cell phone in a packed bar?), and tag-along service to get your car home safely too.



Olympia Cab Company even has a half-priced happy hour from 6-10 p.m.

The company’s ideas seem to be working.  Baldwin tells me they’ll soon be adding another cab to the fleet.



I’m curious to see the vessels, so we go for a ride.



The tan Ford Explorer Baldwin and I jump into is clean and has a nice step up to the backseat, which I can see being extremely handy for those trying to climb aboard while inebriated and in heels. The back is spacious with seating for six to eight people. The seats are all leather, and the GPS system looks sharp. There is a faint smell of new car mixed with hot Oly nights.



Watching the streets pass by, I question Baldwin on whether he’s had any crazy shit go down yet.



He pauses.



He chuckles.



“Well,” he begins, “there was one night where a fairly intoxicated couple was in the backseat, and they began to have sex. We had to politely remind them they’d be home in a moment if they could please wait.”



“It wasn’t exactly sanitary.”



“And then,” he continues, “there was the ride full of girls, and we had to pull over to let one puke. One of the girls started walking down the road taking her clothes off. We got her back in the cab and got them all home.”



He laughs again.



On a more serious note, we begin to talk about the responsibility and pride that comes along with rider safety and service.



“I’m glad we can keep some people from getting a DUI — even if it’s just a couple. It’s a great thing,” Baldwin says, the lawyer in him shining through.

His other pride is the ability to provide great customer service.



People seem to appreciate this.



“The Oly Cab guys are really nice; they’re much faster, and they drive my truck home,” says Pete Jonas, a satisfied rider.



“I call Oly Cab for my patrons because they are prompt. Nobody leaves because they have to wait,” says Jay Einspahr, a downtown bartender.



In Tacoma there are numerous cabs to choose from.



The New Frontier Lounge tends to call Ace Taxi for its customers while Bob’s Java Jive dials up Yellow Cab.



Wherever you live, wherever you drink, just remember that DUIs and alcohol related accidents are freakin’ serious. Expensive, embarrassing, restrictive, permanent, and sometimes fatal — the consequences of drinking and driving can ruin lives. So, to help you on your quest for safe, drunken nights, here is a list of a few cab companies around the South Sound:

Olympia

DC Cab — 360.786.5226

Olympia Cab Company — 360.878.6777

Ready Cab — 360.400.8294

Speedy Cab — 360.456.1919

Tacoma

Ace Taxi — 253.589.1000

Cuddy’s Taxi — 253.891.3925

Orange Cab — 253.517.4444

Yellow Cab Company — 253.472.33033303