September 14 , 2001

Iqaluit wants to get tough on taxi bootleggers

Residents demand better cab service

DENISE RIDEOUT
Nunatsiaq News

IQALUIT — The City of Iqaluit wants to crack down on taxi drivers who bootleg liquor.

The current taxi bylaw gives the city power to suspend or cancel taxi drivers’ permits if they’re convicted of illegally selling alcohol.

But the city’s hands are tied when it comes to suspending licences of drivers who commit other liquor offences, such as illegally possessing alcohol.

By adding "illegal possession of liquor" to the taxi bylaw, the city will have more power to beat bootlegging, says John Matthews, Iqaluit’s mayor.

The city has adopted a zero-tolerance stance on bootlegging.

Recently, Iqaluit’s bylaw officers and the RCMP joined forces to fight illegal booze sales in the city.

Just last week a local cab driver was charged with illegally selling alcohol.

Police charged Aurore Martin, 62, owner of the Toutoune taxi company, after she was allegedly seen selling liquor from a cab. Martin will appear in court to face the charges on Oct. 1.

Members of the taxi industry say they welcome the stricter rules.

"We’re all for it. It’s great," Mark Hobson, a Pai-Pa taxi driver, said from his cab.

Hobson said the bylaw will improve the taxi industry by weeding out "the bad apples." Drivers convicted of liquor violations could lose their taxi permits if the proposed changes to the bylaw are implemented.

Residents say taxi service bad

The mayor said the impetus to change the taxi bylaw came from residents’ complaints.

"We’re hearing from residents that the level of service hasn’t increased and, specifically, there is bootlegging going on," Matthews said.

Some residents and councillors say customer service is poor, despite the taxi drivers’ and owners’ pledge this March that service would get better.

In March, all of Iqaluit’s taxi companies staged a four-day strike after the city refused to allow them to raise their fares.

At the time many city councillors were wary of granting a fare-hike because residents were complaining of poor service. They accused taxi drivers of speeding through the streets and allowing customers to smoke in the cabs. There were also accusations that cabbies were involved in bootlegging.

The taxi industry agreed to shape up its act. The city required cabbies to post signs in their cars telling customers how they could lodge a complaint if they had problems with the service.

The city then granted the taxi companies permission to increase their fares.

But now it appears things aren’t running smoothly.

Besides complaints of bootlegging, residents have said cabbies are still driving too fast and they haven’t followed the no-smoking policy.

"Our cab service has gotten worse since our taxi bylaw was implemented," Kirt Ejesiak, a city councillor, said at the Sept. 11 council meeting.

Ejesiak said he was in a cab last week where the driver refused to ask another customer to stop smoking. The councillor said he’s heard similar complaints from other residents.

The mayor said the city administration has met with members from the taxi industry to discuss residents’ concerns.

He said they were open to many of the suggestions.

"This is the beginning of overall changes to improve the service," Matthews said.

The council will vote on Sept. 25 whether to make the changes to the taxi bylaw.