Stakeholders await review invites from MTO
First session scheduled for 9am March 11
None of the stakeholders who RSVP’d to Ontario’s ground transportation review have yet been notified that they are included on the schedule of consultations as of March 10, one day before the first teleconference is scheduled to be held.
Representatives from the Rideshare Drivers Association of Ontario; RideFAIR; and the Canadian Taxi Asssociation who responded to the RSVP email from the “Rideshare Ontario” division of the Ministry of Transportation have heard back from organizers.
Taxi News reached out to the Ontario Provincial Police to determine whether anyone from OPP would be in any sessions; at time of posting, OPP are checking into the matter but have not received confirmation from any officials.
Marc André Way, president of the Canadian Taxi Association requested and received preliminary meeting with both MTO and the Solicitor-General’s office, both of which he said went very well. Staff in both Minister’s offices asked CTA to stay in touch and continue to provide information as the review progresses.
On March 5, Taxi News contacted 19 existing Taxi companies located along the Northlander service route, none of whom had been informed of the consultations.
The official title of the March 11th-19th consultation is the “Northlander Rideshare Pilot Engagement.”
The Canadian Taxi Association (CTA) sent a letter to Premier Doug Ford on January 19th outlining areas for improvement including consumer protection; passenger safety; compliance with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities’ Act; drivers’ earnings; business being lost to gridlock and congestion; and emissions.
“As a result of your announcement of a ‘framework review” in the November 6th Fall Economic Statement, our group representing a wide range of interests impacted by ground transportation regulations assembled on January 7th to begin developing a vision for an improved regulatory environment in order to share it with you and your team as part of the upcoming review,” the letter said.
Stakeholders who contributed to the submission to Ford included the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police; the Ottawa Police Service; the Rideshare Drivers Association of Ontario; RideFAIR; and accessibility advocates.
“We believe that the ground transportation review announced in the Fall Economic Statement presents an important opportunity to reaffirm the best decisions made over the past decade; revisit policies which are proving unhelpful or actively harmful; and develop a process for systemic review moving forward to ensure continued future success,” Way noted in the CTA’s letter to Ford.
“Technology will never stop advancing, and as the service providers working at the leading edge of these advancements we are committed to do everything possible to support you in developing the regulatory systems needed to keep Ontario moving, safely and effectively.”
On March 2nd, MTO sent an email to stakeholders informing them that consultation dates have been set for March 11, 13, 18 and 19th.
