Uber to resume operations today in Calgary under newly amended bylaw

100,000 Calgarians have signed up to use the service so far

CBC.ca
Dec. 6, 2016

You'll be able to use Uber starting today at 2 p.m. now that city regulations have been adjusted to accommodate the ride-hailing company.

The San Francisco-based business hires drivers who use their personal vehicles to drive customers for a fee.

"This is a tool for the future of mobility in this city," said Coun. Evan Woolley at a news conference organized by Uber.

The way that people are getting around is changing rapidly."

Woolley says 100,000 Calgarians have signed up to use the service so far. Uber says it has hired hundreds of drivers.

Last month, the city voted to amend its livery transport bylaw to allow transportation network companies (TNC) such as Uber to operate.

The new fee structure will charge an annual TNC fee of $5,000 to $20,000, depending on the size of the company's driver roster, plus fees of $15 per driver and 20 cents per trip.

Here is how the TNC fee scale breaks down:

• 1 to 100 drivers: $5,000
• 101 to 500 drivers: $10,000
• 501 to 1,000 drivers: $15,000
• 1,001 drivers or more: $20,000

The new fee structure was approved as a one-year pilot project with council to review the changes in 2017.

Last year, Uber briefly began operating in Calgary before the city succeeded in getting an injunction against the company, which city officials argued was contravening existing municipal rules.

"This has been a long time coming. A lot of work has gone into this," Woolley said.