Uber opposes Halifax background check update
All travellers deserve the same safety standard: Herman
Correction: the initial background check fee was listed as $135 when this article was posted Jan. 22. The fee is $253. Taxi News regrets the error.
On Tuesday, January 27th, Halifax Regional Council will consider a bylaw which would require Uber and Lyft drivers to obtain the same background check currently required of Taxi drivers.
This by-law amendment originally came before Councillors on January 13th along with an additional item concerned with updating Taxi fare structures. However, Halifax Mayor Andy Fillmore set aside his Mayor’s seat to propose that the two items be considered separately.
The bylaw proposal is to create a specific driver’s licence required for all vehicles for hire in the city. Drivers with ridehail companies in Halifax such as Uber, Lyft and URide would submit their record checks to the municipality. Currently, those companies do their own background checks of drivers. Moving to the same background check required of Taxi drivers will cost ridehail drivers an initial $253, and then $100 to renew every two years.
Brian Herman, president of Casino Taxi, points out that it makes perfect sense to apply the same standards to Uber and Lyft drivers as to Taxi drivers.
“Residents getting into a vehicle for hire deserve the exact same safety standard, whether the driver is a full-time professional Taxi driver or a part-time Uber driver,” Herman points out. “From the point of view of safety, It makes no sense to create and apply two different standards.
“The problem with the idea of allowing American corporations like Uber and Lyft to manage their own background checks is that the city of Halifax doesn’t have the information to vet whether these checks are actually occurring. Regardless of additional burden and red tape, I think what it comes down to is public safety.”
Uber opposes the bylaw changes. Using a political tactic now familiar in cities such as Toronto and Ottawa, it sent an email out to its drivers, who then then flooded Councillors offices with hundreds of emails complaining that the increased license fees would mean higher fares for Halifax Uber users.
Mayor Andy Fillmore is echoing Uber’s concerns, and stated that that the proposed TNC driver licensing model will be “overly cumbersome” and “drive up costs for riders”. He wants city staff to write a report with a look at alternatives, such as a data-sharing model where TNC operators would submit required driver information to the municipality on a regular basis.
Halifax Regional Council voted unanimously (16-0) on January 13 to postpone the vote on the first reading of the bylaw to the next council meeting on Jan. 27, allowing more time for a staff report on alternative TNC licensing models.
