Greater Sudbury Working Towards Uber Bylaw

It was undoubtedly only a matter of time that Uber would bring its controversy to the doorstep of the Greater Sudbury Area. The city has said that it is at least willing to consider regulating Uber, but will need to create a new bylaw to do so … it is a luxury that other municipalities in Ontario and Canada have not afforded the U.S. based ride-sharing firm.

Other cities have shown that exploring the idea of a new bylaw is easier said than done. Edmonton successfully created a bylaw that Uber agreed with, only for an auto insurance problem to scupper the company’s legalization in the Albertan city. Other cities have seen Uber pull out of markets in protest at what the company perceives as unfair regulations, Calgary being the most notable.

So, Greater Sudbury has a balancing act to perform, but it is one the city says it is willing to perform. The local government has said it is going to try and create a balanced bylaw, one that can accommodate Uber without alienating the traditional taxi service, which sees Uber as an unfair competitor.

The new vehicles-for-hire bylaw is still in its infancy and the council is sending out a report to assess a way to tread a line towards pleasing all parties.

“The recommendation in this report responds to the motion by council to consider regulations that find a middle ground which allows Uber to serve as broker for its drivers and allows the conventional taxi industry to function more like Uber,” the report says.

“This includes restricting ride share drivers to app-based activity while allowing conventional taxi’s the flexibility to use traditional dispatch, hail and taxi stand methods in addition to an app similar to the ride share sector.”