On Wednesday Winnipeg will know if it has another option to hire a vehicle other than a taxi or limousine.
Ride-sharing services like Uber and Lyft have been pushing their way in to Winnipeg’s market and the final decision will be made by city councillors.
Throughout the process, the taxi industry has pushed council to put a red light on the idea of bringing ride-sharing services to the city.
The taxi industry has called ride-sharing services like Uber a safety concern and an extra dollar weight on taxpayers.
Scott McFadyen, with the Winnipeg Taxi Coalition, said Uber should have the same safety shields found in Winnipeg taxis.
Chris Schaefer, the Public Policy Manager for Uber in Canada, said Uber doesn’t need the safety shield.
“Drivers aren’t carrying cash. They’re less of a target for theft. There is a lack of anonymity in the rider experience. Riders know who the driver is and drivers who the riders are,” Schaefer said.
Schaefer said enough safety check measures and preventative measures exist for Uber drivers that they shouldn’t be seen as or treated the same as taxi drivers.
READ MORE: ‘Safety’ questioned in Winnipeg’s proposed vehicle for hire bylaw
Taxi drivers also claim safety is not the only just one factor on the price Winnipeg will pay if it welcomes Uber.
The industry said it believes the city will lose millions of dollars because it fears the ridership will drop on public transit and public transit brings in lots of revenue for the city.
“We know in looking at other jurisdictions there’s a decline in ridership of public transit, representing very real dollars to the city of Winnipeg,” McFadyen said.
The city said there’s no denying the ridership is down with public transit but it believes that’s been a problem well before ride-sharing was even discussed.
It’s a problem the city said transit will address in planning its future framework going forward as the landscape of passenger services in the city changes.
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