Vegas Taxis Bilked Passengers Out of $15M

Visitors to Vegas might expect the odds to be stacked against them in casinos, but a Clark County audit shows that taxis are also taking them for more of a ride than they bargained for. Cabbies bilked their passengers out of an extra $14.8 million last year by engaging in a practice known as “long hauling,” which most people know as “taking the scenic route,” reports the AP. Some 22.5% of cab rides to and from the airport were of the leisurely variety, the audit found. Although there are currently fines for long hauling, a bill that would have doubled those penalties recently died in the legislature.

"Taxicab drivers don't want to long haul," says the president of one cabbie union, which planned to protest the bill's demise today. "But they're forced to (by their bosses), to make any money." (More Las Vegas stories.)