Tuesday, September 26, 2017

Uber To Cease Operations In Quebec



The statists are getting more and more aggressive with their attacks on Uber.

Just days after London refused to renew Uber's license to operate in that city, the Montreal Gazette reports that Uber will cease operations in Quebec as of Oct. 14.

The final straw for Uber, which has been negotiating with the Quebec government for months in an effort to co-exist with the taxi industry, reportedly was a government demand that its drivers submit to a 35-hour training program already imposed on taxi drivers, according to MG.

Uber reportedly feels such
a program is incompatible with its business model, which relies on part-time drivers who would presumably not be ready to undertake the course.

Uber's Quebec spokesperson Jean-Christophe de le Rueo accused the government of adhering to “new and challenging regulations that favour old policies instead of incorporating the benefits of new technology … based on our current understanding, these changes significantly threaten Uber‘s ability to continue operating in Quebec.”

Not surprisingly, the Quebec taxi industry complained Uber was engaging in unfair competition, since its drivers didn’t hold expensive permits required of taxi drivers, some of which sold on the second-hand market for nearly $200,000.

-RW

2 comments:

  1. Hmm, you'd think if people thought it were necessary for their driver to have 35 hours of training, then they could just not use Uber...

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  2. Or if the intention really were to level the playing field, the state could do away with the 35-hour training requirement for the taxi drivers.

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