WATCH ABOVE: Ever since the ride-sharing service Uber arrived on the scene, cab drivers all over the world have been driven crazy. In Ottawa, videos have surfaced of taxi drivers taking out their frustration. As Mike Le Couteur reports, confused customers are caught in the middle.
A video posted online appears to show a taxi driver threatening to call the police on an Uber driver and two passengers at an Ottawa train station.
The video, which was posted by an unknown individual, appears to be shot from a taxi driver’s point of view. In the video, the narrator approached a man who he identified as an Uber driver and two young women who appear to be passengers, apparently trying to convince them to take a licensed taxi instead.
“Uber is illegal in Ottawa,” said the narrator. “You have to come. I’m telling you, you will be in trouble, I promise you.”
One of the young women appeared uncertain about what to do.
“I’m protecting my business,” said the narrator. “I’m telling you ma’am. I’m calling the police. You will be in trouble.” He urged the woman to take her bag out of the Uber driver’s trunk.
“The lady doesn’t want to go with you anymore,” said the unseen narrator to the Uber driver. “So stop arguing.” The Uber driver eventually removed the suitcase, and the women were pointed towards the regular taxi stand.
While Uber drivers have been charged and fined under Ottawa bylaws, Uber passengers will not be charged in the City of Ottawa, said Philip Powell, the program manager of licensing in a recent media report. The city is currently reviewing its taxi bylaws. Global News contacted the City of Ottawa for comment on the video but did not hear back by deadline.
Global News also contacted Blueline Taxi, the company identified in the posted video’s title, for comment, but did not receive a response. It is unclear whether the video was shot by a Blueline driver.
Watch: Online video appearing to show a confrontation between a taxi driver and an Uber driver and passengers in Ottawa
Global National’s Mike Le Couteur visited the train station, but taxi drivers there were unable to identify who had shot the video. Many of them disagreed with the approach taken by the narrator though.
Omar Omar, a driver with Capital Taxi, said that such tactics are going to ruin the reputation of taxi drivers. “You don’t take the law by your own hands,” he said. “You have to wait for the city to decide. They’re reviewing the bylaw so we have to wait.”
“You don’t have to be intimidating anybody.”
Abdul Hakim, who has driven a taxi for 25 years, said that while he doesn’t agree with intimidating passengers into taking a taxi, he understands some drivers’ frustration. “Some drivers, they are getting angry because they have to pay mortgages, they have to pay everything, and why is somebody taking their bread away from them?”
“Uber is actually illegal,” he said. “The city has to do something. It’s not a double-standard. They are applying a law on us. We have everything. We have a camera in the car, we have a security system, we have proper insurance, but they don’t. How come the law is applying to us, not on Uber? They have to be regulated.”
In an emailed statement, Uber spokesperson Xavier Van Chau wrote, “Taxi and ridesharing can and should coexist in Ottawa to better serve local riders and drivers as is the case in hundreds of cities around the world. It’s unfortunate to see these ongoing intimidation tactics by taxi in Ottawa and we remain committed to supporting our partners and passengers.”
“I find the behaviour completely rude and unacceptable,” wrote Ottawa mayor Jim Watson on Twitter in response to a question from Global News. “It is bullying and intimidation and not welcome in our city.”
With files from Global National’s Mike Le Couteur
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