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Ride-and-dash passengers a problem Capital Region Taxi Bill of Rights could allow cabbies to ask for a deposit in advance of a ride
Christopher Hage
Apology to Christopher Hage
Erin McCracken
On Sept. 28, 2011, the Victoria News printed a front-page article that included a photograph of Christopher Hage. The article also included photographs of suspected criminals. By including Mr. Hage’s photo in the article, the Victoria News implied that Mr. Hage was one of the suspected criminals. The above photograph was printed in error. The Victoria News unequivocally apologizes for printing Mr. Hage’s photograph and including it with the article. editor@vicnews.com
News staff
Taxi drivers in the Capital Region, faced with the growing problem of ride-and-dash passengers, are seeking the right to ask for an up-front deposit payment before the trip begins. A few months ago, Yellow Cab taxi driver Kuldeep Singh sat behind the wheel of his cab waiting for his passenger to return with the $30 fee for her trip. “She said, ‘I’ll come back.’ So you wait for 15 to 20 minutes. She never comes,� the cabbie said. “She left a piece of I.D. (as collateral for payment) and the I.D. is still at the office.� Singh says his experience is commonplace among drivers. Blue Bird Cabs driver Rakesh Kohli will never forget the time two young women got a free ride out of him. “They asked me to go on Gorge Road and by the time I got to the Bay and Blanshard traffic light they just opened up the door and ran away,� Kohli said. “What can I do?� The situation has prompted the Greater Victoria Taxi Association, which represents upwards of 270 drivers, to head to the Mainland tomorrow (April 5) to request that the Passenger Transportation Board expand the Taxi Bill of Rights to the Capital Region. In 2007, B.C.’s Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure began developing the bill for Metro Vancouver, where more than 50 per cent of taxis in the province operate. The statement of principles out-
Sharon Tiffin/News staff
Blue Bird Cabs driver Rakesh Kohli, secretary-treasurer of the Greater Victoria Taxi Association, wants to reduce the number of customers who don’t pay their fare. The association, which represents 270 drivers, hopes to see a Taxi Bill of Rights introduced that would require customers to pay a deposit first. lines expectations between passengers and drivers, including the right of drivers to refuse to transport a passenger if a deposit isn’t provided when requested. Until the bill applies to the Capital Region, there is little drivers can do to recoup their financial losses, Singh said. Drivers can file a police report, but some are loathe to spend upwards of an hour doing that, meaning that many cases go unreported, he said.
We know it’s
“Lots of drivers, for $10 or $15, they don’t bother.� If police are called and there is proof, the passenger can be charged under the Criminal Code with the summary offence of fraud in relation to fares. Drivers can ask to hold a customer’s I.D. while they go get cash. But only about 20 per cent have reclaimed this collateral at Yellow Cab, said Sandi Poulin, human resource and marketing manager for
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Yellow Cab of Victoria. And in certain locations such as Sooke, where mobile debit machines don’t work, often drivers are left with an unpaid tab if a passenger doesn’t have cash. “You can’t get on a (public transit) bus and say I’ll pay you next week or tomorrow,� Poulin said. “No business would do that, yet it happens every day with all the (taxi companies), not just Yellow Cab.� emccracken@vicnews.com
WEB EXTRA:
Roadeo queen tells her story Not many people have get to drive a full-sized transit bus. Victoria News reporter Erin McCracken gave it a shot and talks about her experiences at www.vicnews.com/ news/145196905.html.
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