Texting taxi driver no longer with the company

Blue Line taxi drivers will vote on a new contract, Tuesday, July 26, 2011.

The Ottawa taxi driver accused of texting and driving is no longer working for the company.

Brian Alkerton said he and a friend were taking a taxi home from Ottawa Bluesfest on Sunday when they asked their driver to stop texting.

Instead, the driver stopped the taxi and kicked them out.

Blueline Taxi owner Hanif Patni said he called Alkerton to apologize, which Alkerton said he was happy with.

“What this was about for me is a driver doing something that they’re not supposed to do,” he said. “Just making sure that they either know not to do that in the future, or that if that’s not going to be the case then they not be driving.”

The Ottawa Citizen reports the driver was a part-time worker who was hired by one of the drivers to fill in for his vacation.