Council votes for review of UberX, taxi industry

Toronto councillors have voted unanimously to review the bylaws governing the city's taxi industry.

Councillors voted to review the regulations following recent accusations from taxi organizations that the city's bylaws give UberX drivers an unfair advantage.

UberX is the most commonly used service provided by Uber Toronto, a company that connects drivers with passengers. The service has been able to get around the city's laws, claiming that UberX is a communication service, not a cab company. As a result, drivers working for UberX don't have to purchase taxi licences or complete the required taxi training program.

The City of Toronto took Uber to court over the legality of the company, but an Ontario judge sided with Uber on Friday. The judge dismissed the city's application for a permanent injunction, saying there was "no evidence" that the company was operating as a taxi broker or breaching city bylaws.

Following the verdict, Toronto Mayor John Tory told media he would seek a single bylaw to govern all UberX and cab drivers. Tory said city council would work to come up with a new bylaw in the fall.

"What we have today is not a level playing field. We have a situation where one segment of the industry is highly regulated, competing against another that is not," he said Monday.

"We cannot have a wild west, but we also cannot have a city that ignores the march of time. Technologies like Uber are here to stay but they have to be regulated."

On Wednesday, councillors officially voted in favour of reviewing current regulations, taking Uber into consideration.

In a statement following the vote, Uber representatives said they would be happy to work with the city.

"We want to thank members of council for committing to studying ridesharing," the statement said.