City says no to adding more taxis

[Mr.Coffee]

That's not what I just read about lobbying, but ok.

Seems like the difference is that one is illegal, the other legal. One involves an individual the other more probably a political party, and one is under the table whereas lobbyists usually are more transparent with their funding.

Not huge differences to me though but anyway, safe to assume the city is corrupt in this regard and accepting bribes. No real other explanation?

Also I have higher standards for people like Nenshi. He should be going totally aboveboard here and explaining whatever the BS is all about.

[calgarywinning]

Could it be that Cabs aren't an alternative form of transport because of the monopoly they have carved out with help of the city?

Maybe there is only demand on weekends because that's the only time people can justify paying the rates. Or if it's extremely cold out.

Was in Chicago had great uber experiences. Tried to tip a driver 5$ because he was so awesome and he refused it and said it was all built in.

Get back to Calgary, get in cab, airport pickup fee was 8.75 and just as the other guy said we were at $20 just to get to Deerfoot trail.

Uber. was denied based on the fact that the city was opening more cab licenses, this is kind of going back on their word.

[vanisleflamesfan]

The title of this thread really should have been: "Read My Lips: No New Taxis!"

[puds]

Uber is where it's at.

[pgsieve]

I hope people are starting to see the value in actually listening to party platforms of candidates rather than basing your vote on a popularity contest.

[Daradon]

And wasn't there just a report that said during busy times cab drivers often chose their fares and outright ignore some calls or dispatches?

I don't understand why this is so hard to fix. Someone somewhere is definitely making ill gotten gains.

Not only is this a very important city service issue, as many have said, it's a fricken safety issue.

Well, time to just start using Uber, even if they can't get licensed. Eventually someone will wake up and smell the coffee.

[worth]

When there are gypsy cabs driving around at 1am, you know there is a problem.

Used uber in Sydney and it was fantastic.

[Regorium]

I don't understand how this could happen. I just don't!

Gahhh. Just awful. The prices are spiraling out of control. It costs $45 to get from downtown to the airport. It's 15 km. That's just ridiculous.

[Hack&Lube]

I care a lot about city planning and infrastructure but I don't have any point of reference for this topic. To me, this is a very personal-vehicle and driving oriented city. What are the main uses for cabs? I've taken cabs in other cities but I've never taken maybe one cab in Calgary in my entire life and it seemed costly and inconvenient.

[polak]

Originally Posted by Hack&Lube

I care a lot about city planning and infrastructure but I don't have any point of reference for this topic. To me, this is a very personal-vehicle and driving oriented city. What are the main uses for cabs? I've taken cabs in other cities but I've never taken maybe one cab in Calgary in my entire life and it seemed costly and inconvenient.

Drunks on the weekend is the main issue.

If you go out downtown on the weekend, depending where you are, you can easily spend more than hour walking around aimlessly hoping for a free cab to pop up.

It's actually a huge problem.

[Bill Bumface]

Originally Posted by pgsieve

I hope people are starting to see the value in actually listening to party platforms of candidates rather than basing your vote on a popularity contest.

I hope people have the basic understanding that there aren't parties in our municipal elections

[CliffFletcher]

Catching a cab downtown isn't too bad, even on a weekend. But try getting one out of the suburbs on weekend evenings. Unless a cab happens to be dropping someone off in your neighbourhood, you're out of luck. Last two times I've tried to get a cab to pick someone up at my place after 11 pm, the cab just never showed up.

And the cab we arranged to pick us up to go to our Christmas party this year never showed up either. Same thing happened to several people in my department, including people who had pre-booked a cab days earlier.

They clearly need some real flexibility to handle the dramatic variance in demand. But the whole commission is just too hidebound and afraid of change. They're gonna end up having their entire industry taken over because they couldn't adapt.

[Hemi-Cuda]

Originally Posted by 1stLand

I used Uber when I was in Orlando Florida and the service was great.
Waited 10 min at most and rides were 50% to 75% cheaper than cab rates

So why is Uber not allowed to operate in Calgary? I'm assuming council gave some BS excuse other than because the cab companies paid them off

[Daradon]

Originally Posted by Hemi-Cuda

So why is Uber not allowed to operate in Calgary? I'm assuming council gave some BS excuse other than because the cab companies paid them off

Safety concerns over licensing and regulatory issues. To be fair, I think there are some real concerns, however nothing that couldn't be easily fixed or worked out. I suspect the same, that the decision was primarily for the taxi commission.

[bizaro86]

Originally Posted by Daradon

Safety concerns over licensing and regulatory issues. To be fair, I think there are some real concerns, however nothing that couldn't be easily fixed or worked out. I suspect the same, that the decision was primarily for the taxi commission.

I think its pretty hard to argue Uber Black (using Calgary licensed town cars) would be somehow a scary thing. How is it any more dangerous for me order my town car by app than by phone dispatch?

[northcrunk]

If the city is intent on regulating the amount of cabs why don't they regulate the rates they can charge?

[accord1999]

Originally Posted by bizaro86

I think its pretty hard to argue Uber Black (using Calgary licensed town cars) would be somehow a scary thing. How is it any more dangerous for me order my town car by app than by phone dispatch?

That's a different Uber service with licensed drivers and vehicles compared to the ones where regular drivers use their own cars.

Originally Posted by northcrunk

If the city is intent on regulating the amount of cabs why don't they regulate the rates they can charge?

They do.

[Cappy]

Originally Posted by Mr.Coffee

Can anyone smarter than me explain the difference between the (seemingly) obvious corruption and kickbacks as alleged in this thread and / or lobbying?

What's the difference between "lobbying" and bribery? Why is this not causing more of an outrage in the city?

Seems just unbelievably greasy by our city officials but I might be missing something because it appears so blindingly wrong.

Lobbying is simply expressing one's own interest to an elected official in an attempt to influence their decisions. This is commonly known as "interest groups" and they all do it. This is strictly regulated and there is a commissioner of lobbying that enforces the rules. There is also the commissioners website (federally, at least) that logs all lobbying activity. You can look up specific companies or organizations which detail who lobbies for it, who they lobby to, for what purpose, and when. Under lobbying rules, not money can be spent on elected officials.

Bribery/kickbacks are of course illegal. There, the elected official is now getting an incentive that can influence their decision (money, vacations, business opportunities). This is strictly illegal.

I think what most people on here are referring to is election fundraising. This is also transparent and each candidate in the city releases charts on who founded their campaign and for how much.

[Cappy]

Originally Posted by Hemi-Cuda

So why is Uber not allowed to operate in Calgary? I'm assuming council gave some BS excuse other than because the cab companies paid them off

Nenshi tweeted out last night that Uber has yet to provide proof of insurance to the City.

[rohara66]

Why does Nenshi have a problem with Uber insurance when other cites are just fine? The current city council is so damn frustrating.

I'm curious how many lawyers are employed by the city of Calgary.