Grant rejects VFH industry recommendations
Industry input “speculative, opinion” Carlton Grant says
by Rita Smith and Alexander Zdravko
Despite inviting industry members to provide input into the 2024 Review of the Vehicle-for-Hire By-Law and Industry and paying $30,000 for public consultation sessions, staff based their recommendation on data and “numbers that we’re comfortable with,” says Carlton Grant, Toronto’s Executive Director Municipal Licensing and Standards.
During the consultation period, Toronto’s major Taxi brokerages recommended capping combined Taxi and rideshare vehicle numbers at 16,650. Rideshare Drivers’ Association of Ontario suggested the combined number be capped at 40,000 in order for drivers to be able make a living wage. Instead, the report proposes exempting Electric Vehicles (EVs) from the pool of 85,901 Vehicles for Hire (VFH). After 2030, all VFH are required to be EVs which means there will be no cap on the VFH pool.
“That’s an opinion, when you’re saying what’s needed,” Grant told Taxi News after presenting the staff report at City Hall on December 3rd. “Ours is based on a year’s worth of data and research and numbers that we’re comfortable with, because they (license holders) are not driving all at the same time.
“It’s based on, again, a year’s worth of data, and it’s not speculative to what could happen or what was before, or pre-pandemic.”
Through a Freedom of Information request submitted by Taxi News earlier in 2024, information on the pricing and details of the stakeholder consultations process was obtained.
“Vendor to plan, lead and execute 5 vehicle-for-hire consultations including: 3 industry consultations, 2 public consultations on accessible vehicle-for-hire services. In addition, the vendor is to plan, lead, and execute 3 focus groups related to accessible vehicle for hire services,” stated the Request for Proposals issued by the City of Toronto on March 6, 2024.
Complaints that there were too many Vehicles for Hire working in downtown Toronto was a consistent complaint by participants in all of the public consultations.
