Important that city ‘get this right,’ Deans says

The head of the committee that will oversee Ottawa’s taxi bylaw review cautioned Thursday that it’s too soon to know if the study can be completed this year.

Mayor Jim Watson last week called for the review to be expedited as tensions grow over the emergence of Uber, which Watson said has put stress on the taxi industry. He said he hopes to have a solution that is a “fair compromise” by the end of 2015.

The city hopes to name a consultant by the end of this month to oversee the review of current taxi and limousine regulations, including potential regulations to deal with the emergence of new technologies and transportation-for-a-fee service models.

Diane Deans, chair of the Community and Protective Services Committee, said in an interview Thursday she doesn’t know of any obstacles that would prevent findings from being ready earlier than the previous target of March 2016.

“But having not awarded the contract yet, having not had the opportunity to discuss with the consultant the amount of work that needs to be done, I’ll have more confidence once I’ve had that conversation,” Deans added.

Pushing that deadline to the end of 2015 doesn’t make it that much sooner, but it’s more “important that we get this right,” said Deans.

“I want to make sure through this process that all of the stakeholders believe that they have been heard and listened to,” she said. “There’s a considerable amount of work to be done.”

Watson’s zeal to overhaul Ottawa’s taxi regulations is relatively new. As recently as last fall’s municipal election, the mayor’s views on the growing presence of Uber were more reserved.

“There’ll probably be some desire to look at how technology is affecting the taxi industry,” he said in October.

Last week, however, he asked: “Is there anything we can do to move faster to deal with some of the emerging issues that cities around the world are grappling with?”

Bylaw officers with the help of Ottawa police have laid dozens of charges against Uber drivers since the company launched operations in Ottawa in October 2014.

Also fuelling calls for an early completion of the study is the ongoing job action by drivers in a dispute over fees with Ottawa multi-line taxi operator Coventry Connections and the Ottawa Airport Authority.

Protests that have caused disruptions at the airport and elsewhere entered their 10th day on Thursday.

Deans agreed with Watson that the airport unrest is likely working against drivers in terms of public support.

“Although we respect their collective bargaining rights, we also recognize that this demonstration has caused considerable disruptions in the community, potentially frustrating their own customer base,” Deans told committee members Thursday.

“To that end, we encourage both Coventry Connections and the taxi union to get back to the bargaining table as soon as possible and get this dispute resolved.”