Dear cabbie: St. John's taxi company Newfound introducing driver ID cards

A St. John's cab company is hoping a new driver identification system will put customers more at ease.

Derek Hayter, manager of Newfound Cabs, told CBC News on Monday that by the weekend, all of the company's taxis will display an ID card with the driver's name and picture, and a phone number to call if a customer has any problems.

Hayter said he made the decision after recent CBC coverage of problems in the taxi industry, including assaults and gaps in driver screening.

"In response to all the attention in the media, where you're seeing incidents in the industry that customers would like to report the driver, or compliment the driver, and have a problem identifying who he is, we're creating a driver ID for our vehicles," he said.

We're not going to wait for someone to legislate it. This is in response to consumer demand, this is why we're doing this.- DerekHayter, manager of Newfound Cabs

The IDs should make it easier to identify drivers, said Hayter.

Cabs displaying taxi drivers' licences is a common practice in other cities, he acknowledged.

Hesaid St. John's had a similar bylaw in the past that has "fallen by the wayside."

"Until now, nobody's really said or done anything about it," he said."We're not going to wait for someone to legislate it. This is in response to consumer demand, this is why we're doing this."

Hayter said Newfound's goal will be to respond to any complaints within 24 hours.