By paNOW

Discussions continue in taxi safety bylaw

Jun 28, 2017 | 1:00 PM

A Prince Albert city councillor says he’s sick to his stomach over the increased safety concerns for taxi drivers and is hoping council will aid with regulations.

Ward 6 Coun. Blake Edwards has been pushing to improve safety for taxi drivers following a number of incidents that have taken place over the years. Most notable was the assault on a Checker Taxi driver back in April 2010 where the driver was left scarred when a boy slashed him with a machete.

More recently in Saskatoon, a woman was arrested in June after allegedly attacking a taxi driver.

Edwards made a passionate plea to council earlier this week to look at changing the bylaw so cab companies would be required to improve cab safety including possibly installing barriers and cameras.

“It makes me sick to my stomach that we have to go to plexiglass,” he told council. “It does. I’m not happy we do this but the fact is I got a guy telling me ‘you know what, I’m scared to death.’”

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He said he was approached by taxi and dispatch owners about safety issues and it was only after talking to a number of people he decided to bring the idea to council. He explained cab drivers want these new safety measures in place but are worried not everyone will follow suit unless it is regulated by the city.

Another idea being looked at is the front seat being available to customers only from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. unless there’s barrier in place between the driver and passenger.

Edwards said he would like to see these changes implemented by January of next year. He said concerns have grown to the point where drivers are reconsidering their profession. 

He stressed the city doesn’t have to follow all of the recommendations he listed, he simply wants it to be looked at.

The motion passed, meaning administration will come back with a report at a later council meeting.

Prior to the vote, Mayor Greg Dionne told council he was in a cab recently and struck up a conversation with the driver, who was a franchise owner. He said the driver didn’t want a protective shield and didn’t feel it was right to have it forced into complying.

“The guy I was with absolutely opposes it,” he said. “He agrees with the camera and believes that’s all we should do. He asked me and pleaded with me that we should not force regulations on him because he owns his cab.”

Members of council recommended everyone involved in the industry including those who own their vehicles sit down to talk about solutions.

Ward 3 Coun. Evert Botha added he would like to know what the cost would be to both owners and the companies if they were forced to install the new safety measures. He also wanted to know how many cabs in Prince Albert are owned by the drivers under franchise agreements.

He said the proposed bylaw changes could also impact the shuttle services being developed for medical appointments from Prince Albert to Saskatoon. Botha also pointed out the city needs to look at if ride-sharing companies will be required to follow the bylaw as well.

Jeff.labine@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @labinereporter