By Amanda Persico
apersico@yrmg.com
STAFF PHOTO/NICK IWANYSHYN
Taxis parked at the Markham Civic Centre for a meeting Monday about changing a bylaw to regulate Uber drivers.
City ponders new rules, or not, for Uber, taxis By Amanda Persico
apersico@yrmg.com
Markham taxi drivers are turning to the city create a level playing field for the regulated and licensed cabs. On Monday, city staff made a presentation on the implications of Uber and how the new transportation network company fits into the city’s bylaws. Uber, which operates in more than 300 cities around the world, is a ridesharing app that connects passengers with drivers and offers a flat-rate fee with the ability to pay via mobile device. “We’re the good kids. We’ve paid our dues,” Markham taxi driver Mansoor Iqbal said during this week’s general committee. “Why are we being punished?” The city’s current bylaw does not include provisions for Uber, where users can hail a cab through a mobile app. The city does, however, regulate the base cab fare as well as license cab drivers and charge an annual renew fee. Taxi drivers are losing about 40 per cent of their business to Uber during the week and about 80 per cent during high volume times, such as weekend nights, Iqbal said. “On weekends, (Uber drivers) come out and business dries up,” Iqbal said. “If they come here unchallenged then they will come over and over again. The city needs to discourage this activity.” Uber argues it is not a taxi company. Instead, it is a new business model distinct from the taxi service, said Uber
communications lead Xavier Van Chau in an email. But to call Uber a rideshare company undermines the taxi industry, argued Spiros Bastas, general manager of Royal Taxi. “Ridesharing is if you go to work and someone tags along,” he said. “If you drive from Point A to Point B and collect a fare, that is a taxi company.” Many taxi companies in Markham have mobile apps that offer the ease of ordering a cab as Uber, Bastas said. “It’s not a technology issue, because we have that technology already,” he said. “The No. 1 reason is the price.” Another issue raised was the cost of commercial insurance for a taxi driver, which is from $6,000 to $7,000 a year, compared to the average personal insurance of about $1,200 a year. Personal auto insurance does not cover cars used as a taxi. If a licence taxi driver’s insurance is cancelled or is not in good standing, the insurance company notifies the city’s bylaw department. That does not extend to private or Uber drivers. The insurance industry is currently looking at a middle ground between personal and commercial insurance policies to include rideshare programs, said city clerk Kimberley Kitteringham. It is unknown how many Uber drivers or rides take place in Markham. Toronto sees about 17,000 Uber trips a day and there are 15,000 to 20,000 new Uber users
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a day. City staff recommended taking a GTAwide approach to Uber. “Why did Uber appear? Because the industry is over regulated,” said Councillor Colin Campbell. “Uber is the next Microsoft. It’s not going away. We can make our own rules, then Richmond Hill make their own rules, then Vaughan. That will create havoc.” Councillor Don Hamilton called for the city to do away with taxi regulations and allow the industry to regulate itself. “Why are we involved?” he said. “Why not open it up, get rid of the taxi regulations and let everyone use Uber or something like it. There’s a level playing field.” City staff are working with other GTA municipalities to come up with a standardized approach, that could see a provincewide taxi license, similar to marriage licenses issued by municipalities. Another possibility could be reducing the city’s license and renewal fees as well as reducing the city’s pre-set base fare. Uber provides an opportunity for to look at the city’s regulatory framework, Kitteringham said. “We’re at a crossroads with a number of industries,” she said. “We have to be careful not to go down the rabbit hole and say this is an enforcement issue,” she said. “This is a complex policy issue.” “We believe the right path forward is to develop common sense regulations,” said Van Chau of Uber.
The cost of water is going up. Markham staff this week proposed a 7.8 per cent increase in water and wastewater rates in 2016, bringing the water and wastewater rate up to $3.5751 per cubic metre from last year’s rate of $3.3154 per cubic metre. For the average household that uses about 217 cubic metres per year the proposed increase will add about $56 to your annual water bill. Markham’s proposed 2016 water rate includes a 9 per cent increase from the region as well as the city’s infrastructure and reserve surcharge and annual operation costs. Last month, the region set its water and wastewater rate increases, which will see a 9 per cent hike each year to 2020. In 2007, the city approved a water and wastewater infrastructure surcharge that is phased in each year until the 2017 rates. The region’s portion of the $56 increase is about $48 or about 85 per cent of the total rate increase. Part of the region’s price goes to purchasing water from Toronto and Peel. But the issue with buying from neighbours to the south is Toronto is charging higher rates to recoup costs for replacing its aging infrastructure, the city’s environmental services direction Peter Loukes said. “There is no national policy on water. We don’t even have one at the region,” Councillor Logan Kanapathi said. “The region is a broker. There are too many brokers before the resident turns on the tap.” Councillor Valerie Burke agreed, arguing there should be more of a breakdown on how the money is spent, especially at the regional level, similar to the property tax brochure that breaks down where funds are spent penny by penny. For every 1,000 litres – or 1 cubic metre – the city buys from the region, the city sells about 890 litres. The missing 110 litres are attributed to water loss with about 90 litres lost due to pipe leaks and watermain breaks, about 12.5 litres due to inaccurate water meter readings, 5 litres from pipe flushing and fire fighting and 2.5 litres from water theft. Councillor Don Hamilton challenged city staff to find further efficiencies to reduce the amount of lost water the city still pays for. “All I see is water going up, up, up each year,” he said. Water isn’t the only basic utility creeping up in costs, Hamilton added. City staff compared water rates to other basic costs such as costs for cellphone plans with data, high speed Internet, cable and landlines. Water and wastewater came in the middle of the pack, with the average family in Markham spending about $676 a year – after the proposed increase. Councillor Karen Rea took exception to the comparison. “If I didn’t have any money, I can get rid of my cellphone, landline and cable,” she said. “But you can’t get rid of your water. Everyone needs water.”
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| The Markham Economist & Sun | Thursday, November 26, 2015
Water rates to rise for Markham users
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