You do not need a driver in the city. In fact, it would be more of a headache than a help with parking, traffic, and general mayhem. ESPECIALLY in Times Square which is where Maureen and Sara preferred to work from. They did mostly in calls.
The other girls that used protection or pimps in the city did not use them as drivers. They would call them to let them know all was safe. Then the pimp would wait in a restaurant or cafe nearby until the call was over. They were muscle on hold but they didn't drive them regularly. An outcall would also only require a "driver" if you were leaving the city and going to LI or the Burbs, but even then you could get there by public transportation. Maureen and Sara were working out of the area where ALL of the major transportation hubs are in the city.
Shannan was the ONLY one known to use a driver. She was based in the BX, which is closer to Weschester burbs. She could get anywhere she needed to go without a driver and a car but she just seemed to prefer using one because the BX is not as central to certain parts of the city and could be a haul on the subway. The other girls didn't. There is no documentation of that at all. Getting around is just very different here. A car isn't always the most efficient way in NYC.
Also VIPS got money for posting their ads, and is characterized as hardly as menacing as say Vybe who was an actual ruthless pimp and trafficker. VIPS got mad when Sara and Maureen began posting their own ads to save money and he began flagging their ads and getting them removed from Craig's List. I'm sure he is shady, obviously, but a pimp? No. More like a wannabee. Sara and Maureen worked on their own, independently, and were proud of that. That comes across in the book pretty strongly.
:moo: