SUMMERSIDE, P.E.I. — Summerside’s ongoing review of its taxi bylaw took another step forward at the Nov. 3 council meeting, as cabbies gave council feedback on the proposed new policy.
The city recently made a draft version of its new bylaw available and the public was invited during the meeting to provide thoughts.
Chris Pye, who owns Air Cab in Summerside and Charlottetown, raised three issues he had with the document, including: whether cabs should be allowed to deliver alcohol and cannabis, what qualifies as a rideshare and whether cabbies really need $2 million worth of liability insurance.
Pye pointed out that the current bylaw and its proposed replacement prohibit the delivering of alcohol by taxi, but neither mention cannabis. He asked council to consider allowing taxies to deliver both, as other jurisdictions have done.
He also noted that increasing the amount of liability insurance cab drivers must have from $1 million to $2 million would significantly increase the cost of doing business and could force some drivers out of the industry.
The ridesharing question was a bit more complicated, as city staff said the broad intent of the new bylaw is to include ridesharing services like Uber under the taxi bylaw, however, Pye pointed out that some of the wording of the document was vague in that regard and he asked that it be clarified.
Council agreed to take all these suggestions under advisement and move them for further discussion at the committee level before a final draft of the new bylaw is sent to council.
