纽芬兰致力提高出租车乘车安全

纽芬兰致力提高出租车乘车安全

The Newfoundland and Labrador government is making moves to ensure taxis are roadworthy and cabbies are capable of driving safely — but has stopped short of requiring background checks into their past behaviour, when they aren’t behind the wheel.

The province has instead left that task to cab companies and municipalities.

“Because the taxi industry, the taxi companies, are doing it themselves,” Service NL Minister Sherry Gambin-Walsh told reporters.

“They’ve taken ownership of that requirement. And they understand the safety concerns engaged around that particular process.”

The minister said she remains open to discussions with St. John’s city council, which has asked the province to include background and vulnerable sector checks in its licensing requirements.

Council made that request after a 2016 CBC News investigation revealed gaps in oversight of taxi drivers.

The issue has been in the spotlight since a cabbie was charged earlier that year with on-the-job sexual assaults. He has since been convicted.

Drivers, taxis subject to new regulations

Among the series of regulatory changes unveiled Wednesday morning, were requirements for specialized driving training for new cabbies, and more random inspections of vehicles.

Derek Hayter of Newfound Cabs welcomed the moves by the province.

“Going forward, it’s going to make a positive change to the industry, with little doubt it’s going to be a positive change, in that the drivers will have a more professional standing. Their driving skills will be improved,” he said.

New drivers will need to be licensed for at least two years before they can apply to pilot a cab, and pass a written exam and road test.

Drivers from jurisdictions that don’t have a reciprocity agreement with Newfoundland and Labrador will have to hold a licence in this province for two years before applying to drive a taxi. That’s up from one year now.

On the enforcement side, taxi licences will be revoked for anyone with three or more Highway Traffic Act driving-related convictions in a two-year period.

Licences will also be pulled for any Criminal Code conviction related to driving, or Highway Traffic Act conviction related to bodily harm and/or death.

There will also be new inspection requirements, after a recent series of roadside inspections turned up issues. 

Gaps in taxi oversight revealed

A year and a half ago, a CBC News investigation revealed gaps in oversight for the taxi industry in St. John’s.

Soon after, St. John’s city council began lobbying the province to create a special class of taxi licence that would include background checks for drivers.

But the province has remained cool to the idea.

While the conflict continued between the two levels of government, the industry began making moves to regulate itself, and burnish its image.

Some taxi companies now require drivers to provide a criminal background check and vulnerable sector check.

“We were already doing that anyway,” said George Murphy of Jiffy Cabs, which has about 200 drivers.

“If there’s an argument between government and municipalities over that … let them argue.”

The Newfoundland and Labrador Taxi Alliance recently received $52,000 from the province to go toward first aid, sensitivity and driver training.

And this week, St. John’s council approved a plan to partner with the industry to help keep an eye on the streets.

&nbsp

本文来自CBC News。本文观点不代表Chinese Students at MUN立场,转载请联系原作者。

出处:http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/nl-tax-regulations-road-passenger-safety-1.4664075

(0)
上一篇 2018年4月29日 下午12:47
下一篇 2018年5月16日 下午7:06

相关推荐

  • 历史新高!加拿大计划每年接纳40万移民

    联邦移民部长门迪奇诺(Marco Mendicino)透露疫情下本国移民政策的一些新进展,包括2021-2023年的移民数量计划、公民入籍的新形式以及城镇提名移民计划等。门迪奇诺传达的一个重要信息是,他确信加拿大目前的移民数量目标是现实的。 据《加拿大移民通讯》(CIC News)报道,门迪奇诺最近在电视节目《The Agenda》的20分钟访谈中,谈及广泛…

    2021年1月27日
    0
  • Newfoundland Power寻求电费上涨

    The province’s consumer advocate is not pleased with Newfoundland Power’s request for a 1.2 per cent rate increase to pay more to its shareholders. Dennis Browne says t…

    2018年6月29日
    0
  • 麦当劳向大西洋省限时特供炸鱼薯条

    McDonald’s is looking to cash in on one of eastern Canada’s most beloved dishes. Starting Tuesday, McDonald’s restaurants through Atlantic Canada will offer a fis…

    2018年5月30日
    0
  • 圣约翰斯现可用App为泊车付费了

    先不废话,上APP下载链接 来源:http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/pay-by-phone-parking-finally-comes-to-st-johns-1.4693307 The search for spare change could be behind people par…

    2018年6月5日
    0