Uber had a bumpy ride in 2015, but the company鈥檚 Canada manager tells 麻豆传媒 Channel it is working with cities to make sure the next year goes more smoothly for the company, which he said now has 鈥渙ver a half-million鈥� regular Canadian users.
The company has courted has controversy with uberX, a wildly popular service that allows anyone with a late-model vehicle, smartphone and a background check to offer rides through its smartphone app, often for less money than standard taxi fares.
That has led to protests in and other cities across Canada, in which cab drivers snarled traffic in an attempt to force city officials to do more to stop the Uber drivers they say flout regulations and eat into their business.
Cities far and wide have debated by-law changes, but that hasn鈥檛 stopped the protests. In a council meeting discussing possible regulations to legalize the service got so out of hand that councillors briefly left their chambers.
The company ended the year with another potential foe. On Monday, it in Toronto, which picks up multiple passengers at popular locations and drives them to other popular spots for a flat fee of $5.
That has the Toronto Transit Commission promising a legal 鈥渞eview.鈥�
Ian Black, General Manager of Uber Canada, spoke to 麻豆传媒 Channel on Wednesday about some of that controversy, in particular why the company won鈥檛 just wait for generally-supportive city councillors and mayors to adapt their taxi bylaws to the new service.
Black responded that 鈥渞ide-sharing is a very different business model and very different regulatory consideration than the taxi industry.鈥�
鈥淢ost cities around the world who have regulated this, and there are about 60 鈥� have chosen to create new regulatory framework,鈥� he said.
鈥淎nd that's what was suggested by Toronto city staff. It's also been suggested by the City of Edmonton, the City of Calgary, so really Canadian cities around the country are looking for new regulatory frameworks."
Black also pointed to the service鈥檚 apparent benefits, which make it hard for politicians to ignore.
First of all, he said the service has created 鈥渙ver 20,000 jobs.鈥�
It isn鈥檛 clear how many of those jobs are part-time, however. Black said most of the drivers using their own vehicles are only doing so about 10 hours per week.
Another benefit, according to Black, is that the service can reduce congestion. For example, uberHOP, 鈥渉elps take people who are already driving their cars or taking uberX or taxi and puts them together in one car.鈥�
It鈥檚 not yet apparent how many fit that description, however. UberHOP鈥檚 initial routes are all along the city鈥檚 busiest streetcar line, and some potential users told CTV Toronto they saw it as an alternative to the overcrowded TTC.
Black was also asked about accusations that uberX drivers and passengers are not properly covered by insurance.
Black said that 鈥渆very uberX ride is insured.鈥� At the same time, he said they have 鈥渁nnounced a partnership with Intact Insurance鈥� 鈥搉ot yet in place 鈥� 鈥渢o create even more and new policies for the ride-sharing industry,鈥� that will 鈥渋ncrease the safety of the platform.鈥�
Either way, Black suggested that city officials support cracking down on Uber drivers will need to contend with a small army of loyal users.
"There's over a half a million Canadians now who rely on Uber on a regular basis for their ride,鈥� Black said. 鈥淚 think the vast majority of people who use our service 鈥� really see the innovations that we're bringing as a good thing.鈥�
