Saint John taxi drivers revive group to fight new bylaw

Taxi drivers are reviving the Saint JohnTaxi Owners and Operators Association and giving it a mission to stop a new bylaw that will make meters in cabs mandatory and place a limit on the age of vehicles.

Dozens of taxi drivers met on Sunday and agreed to revive the association and elect a new executive in two weeks.

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Donnie Wilband, a taxi drivers, saidit will be tasked with stopping the bylaw.

"You have to have an association that represents the majority of the cabbies in Saint John, so the city and the police commission can have somebody that they can deal with," said Wilband.

"This is what their problem is and ours, so that's what we're going to do."

The group may seek a lawyer to see if the bylaw can be stopped through legal action against the city, said Wilband.

Saint John city council passed a bylaw in June that will make fare meters mandatory and phasein aseven-year limit on the age of vehicles used as cabs.

About 65 per cent of Saint John's taxis are older than seven years, according to municipal statistics.

Takes effect in June

The bylaw on the taxi industry in Saint John takes effect in June.

While advocates for the new bylaw think it will improve the taxi industry in Saint John, other cabbies say it will drive fares up and cost them business.

Kevin Ramsay, a taxi driver, saidcity council isn't listening to the complaints.

"I think that they know the great majority of the public isn't for this either," said Ramsay.

"So I'm not sure where their direction is on this."

PatriciaGlode, a long-timecabbie,also said shethinks the bylaw needs to be scrapped, but isn't ready to fight it alone.

"A law is a law, city hall is someone we have to fight with and I don't particularly care for that," Glode said.