Chicago City Wire

Because taxi driver Bayo Aladesuru goes above and beyond his job requirements, the city of Chicago recently awarded him a free medallion at 2016’s Access Chicago expo, a biannual event geared for individuals with disabilities.  

The Taxicab Medallion Excellence Award was created for drivers providing services to passengers with disabilities. Each year, the Taxicab Driver Excellence Committee honors one wheelchair accessible vehicle chauffeur for outstanding service following a nomination process by the general public.

Committee members Karen Tamley of the Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities and Maria Guerra Lapacek, Commissioner of the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection presented the 2016 award to Bayo at the Access Chicago event. Tamley noted that accessible taxis are crucial to independent living for the disability community.

“It is because of chauffeurs like Bayo who go above and beyond to provide quality service to the disabled community so they can navigate Chicago independently,” Lapacek said. “The nominations for Bayo painted a very clear picture of the impact of the service he provides to his customers and what exemplary service looks like.”

Bayo’s 40 nominations earned him the prize over three other drivers in the running.  In 2015 he responded to over 1,800 calls from Central Dispatch for his wheelchair accessible cab. One client wrote, “I wish I could request him every time I need to go to the doctor. He treated me like a person and not just a customer. I wish every taxi driver had the same courtesy.”