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Saskatoon’s city administration would like Uber regulated by the province.
City administration is recommending at a Standing Policy Committee on Transportation meeting on Monday morning that city council “communicate its support to the province for the regulation of transportation network companies at a provincial level.”
In May, Uber spoke to the transportation committee about the benefits of bringing the service to Saskatoon.
The app-based service has been in Canada for about three years. Uber is already available in Toronto, Vancouver, Ottawa and Edmonton.
Uber did not provide a timeline for moving into Saskatoon and only said they are in the process of meeting with stakeholders.
At that time, not all councilors were behind the ride-sharing service.
For example, Councillor Pat Lorje was concerned about the vetting process, data sharing and safety. However, Councillor Darren Hill said he used it in New York and would welcome it to Saskatoon.
Many councillors asked about jurisdiction and licensing, whether the decision to bring Uber into the city would even be a city issue.
SGI said its role, if Uber decided to come to the province, would be registration, insurance, and driver’s licences.
SGI’s website explained that transporting passengers for compensation with regular plate is not allowed and can result in fined or may jeopardize vehicle insurance coverage.
Licenses under the Black Car or Airport service seen in Saskatoon would also not apply because Class PB (limousine) vehicles aren’t allowed to operate like a taxi, which means they can’t be used with a rideshare application.
