Uber now legal in London, without cameras

CTVnews.ca
Feb. 15, 2017
By Justin Zadorsky

After 18 months of operating as a rogue company, Uber and other ride sharing applications can now legally operate within London.

Council voted Tuesday to approve a bylaw imposing some regulations for the services, however that bylaw no longer includes a provision for cameras.

The twist came when Councillor Michael Van Holst flipped his vote from last meeting and voted to approve the revised bylaw.

That drew the ire of the London Taxi Association who saw the provision for in-car cameras as a win for their side.

“He bent to what Uber wanted,” says Roger Caranci with the London Taxi Association. “And that’s very troubling to me, that a member of this council who is duly elected by representatives of the ward he represents, bows down to a company and does exactly what they want him to do.”

From Uber drivers the messages to Van Holst are very different.

“I cannot thank him enough,” says Deirdre Pinto, London’s top Uber driver.

Uber had said they would pull out of London if their drivers were forced to install cameras. Uber says that the requirement would have been unique to London, as none of their drivers are required to have cameras in any other Canadian community where they operate.

The London Taxi Association says they will have a response to the reversal on the cameras issue but that it will not involve job action. Originally some members of the taxi industry said that they would pull their service if the camera provision was scrapped.

Caranci did not go into detail as to what their response will be.