Brandy Thomas just wants to drive and make money to support her family.

But, the city of Chicago denied the single mother of four the right to drive for Uber, forcing her to scramble for another way to earn a living.

"I had to start doing DoorDash and other mobile apps until I started working a regular job again," Thomas told Southland Marquee.

She had driven for the ride-hail company for approximately three years when she was suspended in 2021. She received several tickets – some for parking, but mostly for red-light camera violations. She entered into a payment plan, paying between $35 and $55 per month, and thought she was in compliance when her ability to drive for Uber was suspended.

Thomas, 41, is a Chicago native who now lives in the suburbs. She said the red light cameras are “[expletive]” and they cause more traffic problems than they prevent. They are mostly a revenue source for the city, according to Illinois Policy.

"I think they need to be taken away," Thomas said. "You actually get into more accidents trying not to get the [expletive] ticket."

Cook County maintains a city code that gives Chicago the right to revoke a business license if drivers do not pay or are unable to pay issued tickets.

Section 54-391 of the Cook County Code of Ordinances states, "The license of any person who has failed to pay any fine, assessment of costs, or other sum of money owed to the county pursuant to an order of the Department of Revenue, an order of the Department of Administrative Hearings, or a court order, by the due date indicated in the order or within 30 calendar days of becoming a debt due and owing, may be suspended by the Department of Revenue, in accordance with its rules and after affording a hearing. The license shall be suspended until such time that the fine, assessment of costs, or other sum of money has been fully paid."

Chicago drivers have two options if their license is suspended because of outstanding debt from parking tickets, according to the city of Chicago website: 1) Pay all of the parking ticket violations and fines in full; payment must be made to the Chicago Department of Finance, or 2) challenge the license suspension by filing an appeal with the secretary of state within 21 days of receiving the notice of suspension.

Thomas said she feels trapped in a bureaucratic nightmare when she contacts the city about getting back her right to drive and earn a living.

"They keep telling me to reach out to the state," she said. "And it's like the state is pretty much telling me they have no reason to take me off the platform because I'm in compliance. I'm still on the payment plan."

Thomas was driving six to eight hours a day, making $150 to $200. She enjoyed the job and would like to have her ability to drive for Uber restored.

"I actually would like to do it," she said. "It was good money."

A 2019 WBEZ analysis of data obtained through public records requests showed that Chicago's ride-share suspensions have hit the city's majority Black and low-income neighborhoods the hardest, according to NPR.

Chicago ticket debt piles up disproportionately in the city's low-income, mostly Black neighborhoods. Eight of the 10 ZIP codes with the most accumulated ticket debt per adult have a majority of Black residents, according to a ProPublica analysis of ticket data in Illinois since 2007 and figures from the U.S. Census.

The Cook County code allows a department or agency to deny renewal, suspend, or revoke a general business license. A notice is sent to the applicant and a copy is sent to the Department of Revenue. The notice is prima facie, meaning the document itself is legally sufficient to deny issuance, deny renewal, or suspend a business license.

A license can only be suspended, denied, or revoked after a proper hearing is held where the applicant is given seven days' notice, however. The director of revenue can grant one continuance after a so-called show of good cause.

Approximately 1,000 Chapter 13 bankruptcy filings were for unpaid tickets in 2007, according to ProPublica Illinois. The average debt to the city of Chicago was $1,500. There were over 10,000 Chapter 13 bankruptcy filings as of last year, with an average debt of approximately $3,900. The city of Chicago increased the cost of ticket fines and license suspensions and advanced the traffic camera program between 2007 and 2021.

That left people like Brandy Thomas unable to do a job she liked and was good at, while she tries to battle a maze of government regulations that confounded her and left her unable to drive. It is "frustrating," she said.

Note from Southland Marquee: This story is part of a collection highlighting how Cook County and city of Chicago policies affect freelancers, small business owners, and ride-hail drivers.