ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT

Date: November 26, 1998
Author/Local: P.Teichroeb/7545
RTS No. 364
CC File No. 2801

TO:	Vancouver City Council
FROM:	Chief License Inspector
SUBJECT:	Amendments to Vehicle for Hire By-law No. 6066

RECOMMENDATION

A. THAT Vehicle for Hire By-law No. 6066 Section 20.(1) be amended to allow up to 40 dual cabs in any one year;

B. THAT the Director of Legal Services be instructed to bring forward the necessary by-law amendments.

GENERAL MANAGER’S COMMENTS

The General Manager of Community Services RECOMMENDS approval of A and B.

COUNCIL POLICY

Council policy is to make the City more liveable for people with a disability by the removal of physical and social barriers which impede their full participation in all aspects of city life.

PURPOSE

To propose amendments to the Vehicle for Hire By-law to allow taxi cab companies to operate dual taxicabs under the existing sedan licenses.
BACKGROUND

In 1982, the City issued the first licenses in Canada for wheelchair-accessible taxis. There are currently 418 sedan taxicabs in the City with an additional 30 dual cabs which are wheelchair accessible. All of the dual cabs are operated by Vancouver Taxi.

Staff have been working on a report which will recommend to Council some additional dual cab licenses which have been requested by Black Top Cabs and Yellow Cabs. There have been some delays in bringing this report forward as there are some outstanding issues related to distribution of these licenses and the Motor Carrier Commission approval process.

Yellow Cabs have requested temporary approval to surrender up to five existing sedan licenses for dual cabs licenses in order to comply with the Vancouver Airport Authority requirement for physically challenged passenger service. Black Top and MacLures Cabs have indicated that they will work together with Yellow Cabs to provide a portion of this wheelchair accessible service. These companies propose to implement this service immediately and will be leasing the fully-equipped vehicles which will meet the City’s requirements.

The Vehicle for Hire By-law Section 20.(1) stipulates that a maximum of 30 dual taxi cabs shall be owned or operated in any one year. As all 30 of these licenses are owned and operated by Vancouver Taxi, it is not possible to allow other cab companies to operate any of the existing sedan licenses as dual cabs.

CONCLUSION

As an interim measure, staff are recommending that Section 20.(1) of the Vehicle for Hire By-law No. 6066 be amended to allow up to 40 dual cab licenses in any one year. This will allow these three taxi cab companies to surrender some of the existing sedan licenses in exchange for dual cab licenses as a temporary solution. It is anticipated that the full report recommending additional licenses will be brought forward to Council in early 1999.

The Disability Issues Committee supports additional accessible taxis.

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(c) 1998 City of Vancouver