Open letter to Doug Ford on “rideshare pilot”

Taxi operator translates disengenuous rhetoric on canard of a pilot

Update April 6, 2026: This column has been updated since it was initially posted on April 5th with the addition of the point on Accessible vehicles.

Here I am, on Easter Sunday, trying to explain to my own government why allowing U.S. conglomerates unfettered access to the whole of the province under the pretenses of a pilot is unfair, unwise and unsafe.

–Mike Sanders, The Aaron Group, Sudbury

Dear Doug Ford,

For the better part of a decade, I’ve laboured assiduously to grow a small family taxi company into a regional transportation provider dedicated to customer service, accessibility and community involvement. I’ve spent millions developing: a hybrid vehicle fleet with the most rigorous training and safety protocols in the industry; a black car service for citizens and visitors (who include the executives of some of the largest mining companies on the planet); a dynamically routed, on-demand airport shuttle service; the largest accessible vehicle fleet in northern Ontario.

My company employs almost 200 people, and our drivers benefit from the assurance they’ll receive the better of minimum wage or commission, with accessible drivers eligible for even more. I’ve managed to do this while following the rules as they were written: municipal, provincial and federal. I would expect anyone that enters this market to be obliged to do the same. For the record, our municipal By-law does not preclude rideshare but it does compel them to require vulnerable sector police checks from their drivers. I guess that doesn’t fit into their business model, so they’ve petitioned for a back door.

And now, here I am, on Easter Sunday, trying to explain to my own government why allowing U.S. conglomerates unfettered access to the whole of the province under the pretenses of a pilot is unfair, unwise and unsafe. But I’m sure you’ve heard that already and plan to proceed anyway.

 So, my response aims only to point out not just how disingenuous your rhetoric sounds but what a canard this pilot is. To do this, I’ve taken the liberty of translating excerpts from your pilot overview. I honestly can’t believe someone whose salary comes from the taxes myself and my employees pay wrote this crap:

You wrote:

“App-based rideshare services have expanded significantly across Ontario in recent years and have become an important transportation option in many communities. Currently, municipalities, rather than the province regulate rideshare services and rules vary across Ontario. Some rideshare operators have indicated that inconsistent requirements can limit the expansion of rideshare services into rural, remote, and northern communities.

The Government of Ontario is reinstating the Northlander Passenger Train, which will carry passengers 740 kilometres between Toronto and Timmins, with a rail connection to Cochrane. This creates a unique opportunity to improve first and last-mile connectivity along the corridor, and the Ministry is proposing this pilot as a first step toward supporting that goal.

Some rideshare operators have indicated that varying requirements across municipalities have created barriers to expanding rideshare services, despite growing demand in small, rural, remote, and northern communities and among vulnerable individuals such as older Ontarians. The outcomes of the pilot may inform future policy considerations related to rideshare services in Ontario.”

Translation:

After invading most markets in southern Ontario without concern for existing regulations Uber doesn’t really see the benefit in engaging with communities in northern Ontario. It would be much easier to hire Doug Ford’s campaign manager to advocate for provincial legislation that tramples over municipal control, oversight and fee collection. Instead of municipalities guiding how their streets are used and their citizens transported, we, the province, know better. After all, we’ve concocted policy gems like: the Greenbelt scandal, useless strong mayor powers, Highway 413, buck-a-beer, beer and wine in convenience stores at a ridiculous cost to taxpayers, and stickers on gas pumps. And now, we’re ready to unveil yet another with our curtailing of Freedom of Information Requests (which is probably going to come in real handy burying how this pilot came about).

Instead of engaging with existing, local, Canadian companies that have served their communities for decades, our government, with its conspicuous disdain for municipal governance, rather saddle up with a winner like Uber. Sure, they’ve choked traffic and been ruinous to transit agencies’ revenues in major centers. And maybe they’ve set employment legislation back 50 years (with our help through DPWRA, of course). Also, we acknowledge technology could have been created and deployed to expand and benefit the local enterprises we allege to support. But, hey, we’ve made a good show of feigning support for Canadian businesses and workers in other industries thus far, so let’s just lob this one over to Uber and not worry about it.

Seriously, we won’t have to worry about it. Because in every other jurisdiction that Uber has played politicians like fiddles and gained preferential regulation over their local competition—enforcement is essentially impossible.

You wrote:

• “The pilot requirements would apply instead of any existing municipal bylaws for rideshare services in the municipalities of North Bay, Temiskaming Shores, and Timmins to establish consistent requirements for rideshare services operating along the Northlander Passenger Train corridor.”

Translation:

• Our definition of consistent differs from most peoples’. When we say consistent, what we actually mean is: we’re offering Uber and Lyft carte-blanche with absolutely no plans for reversing course if it goes south and letting municipalities and the providers that operate within them figure out how to muddle on in a two-tiered system.   

You wrote:

• “Establish reporting requirements for rideshare operators to support compliance and inform potential future province-wide oversight.”

Translation:

• No, we’re not kidding. We actually think reports are the best method to conduct compliance & enforcement of a notoriously uncooperative set of conglomerates based in a different country. We’re just hoping for the best.

You wrote:

“The Ministry has consulted with municipal and industry stakeholders to inform the proposed Rideshare Pilot, minimize unintended consequences of implementation, and support increased access to rideshare services, helping travellers make the most of the Northlander connections across the province. The Ministry will continue to engage stakeholders throughout the implementation of the Pilot, gathering feedback and data that will inform the future phases of province-wide rideshare oversight.”

Translation:

Basically, we’re going to take our cues from Uber and do what we want here. But we’ve put this incredibly benign and ineffectual webpage up to make you feel like you’re getting some input. That’s just how FordNation rolls. 

You wrote:

• “PTCs with more than 500 vehicles may be required to provide accessible transportation.”

Translation:

• Remember when we said this pilot was meant to benefit seniors and vulnerable populations? Gotcha!

Sincerely,

Michael Sanders

President, Aaron Group