Calgary's Uber Injunction Raises Fresh Questions About Toronto's Lack of Enforcement

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Nov. 24, 2015) - Last Friday a Calgary judge delivered a blow to Uber issuing a temporary injunction against the ride share. The city is planning to file a permanent injunction to stop Uber and all ride shares from breaking the rules. Rules that require drivers offer specific vehicle safety checks, commercial insurance and follow regulatory requirements. Sound familiar?

Toronto lost its injunction because it didn't have the right definition written into the bylaw which allowed Uber to wriggle through a grey area and carry on. That has now changed. Council voted and amended the bylaw in October. They asked Uber to stop operating until new bylaws legalizing the operation come into effect in the Spring. Uber refused and today continues to operate illegally, despite Co-op asking the City once again to file an injunction against Uber.

"How did Calgary city officials achieve what Toronto's couldn't?" asks Peter Zahakos, CEO of Co-op Cabs. "Better lawyers? Better bylaws? No. The answer is simple. Political will."

"Think about that for a second," says Zahakos. "We have a business operating illegally in Canada's largest city and nothing is being done to stop it? Why does Uber get to play by its own rules?"

Until new bylaws are approved, Calgary's win against Uber illustrates illegal ride shares can be stopped. "There is no reason Toronto cannot get an injunction similar to what Calgary has done," says Zahakos. "The bottom line is Toronto appears to have an Uber-friendly mayor. We deserve fairness too. After all we pay huge costs to the city for that fairness. Calgary, a city much smaller than Toronto successfully stopped this law breaker in its tracks. We are asking the City to do its job and file an injunction immediately."