A taxi broker in Kingston is not happy with the fact that an upcoming bylaw meant to govern ride-sharing businesses is in limbo. Kevin Murphy has been driving taxis for 25 years and now brokers seven cars for Amey’s Taxi in the city. He believes drivers for any car service should be regulated.
“There’s no reason why they should not be following the same laws and rules of the taxi industry.”
The bylaw was passed earlier this year by the Kingston Area Taxi Commission, a regulating body made up of elected officials and members of the public.
It was recently put on hold after local Uber driver James Litchfield claims he reported the regulations to the Competition Bureau of Canada. Litchfield says he is now actively working with an investigator on the claim.
“He believes there is something in there, I don’t know what, but there is definitely some things in there worth looking into for them,” says Litchfield.
Kevin Murphy has been involved in the ongoing talks regarding the bylaw. He says, the limitations recommended to the KATC were made after three years of research and working with a range of stakeholders, not just within the taxi industry. Murphy says although some people may think the commission is made up of taxi drivers, it’s not.
“There is nobody from the taxi industry on the commission.”
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The bylaw would, among other things, limit the number of cars on the road and apply hefty registration fees for Uber drivers and the company. The regulations run 37 pages and address several issues Murphy thinks are important, including safety.
“They realized the Uber safety checks didn’t cover half as many points,” Murphy says.
With a number of incidents happening in ride-sharing vehicles in the past few years — including a Calgary mother allegedly being assaulted by an Uber driver earlier this year, Murphy says the commission wants to make sure people are safe when getting in a car.
WATCH: Uber under fire after video surfaces of alleged assault of Calgary mother
“They felt they needed to have better criminal searches done, just for public safety.”
Although several provisions of the bylaw could be costly for drivers and the company — Murphy and other taxi drivers say it makes everything level for everyone on the roads.
“Everything I saw, I thought was fair. I’m heavily regulated. I have a lot of regulations that I have to follow with my seven cabs.”
Now with the bylaw put on hold until further notice, the KATC is set to meet on Wednesday to discuss their next step.
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