Metro Vancouver Residents Want Government Regulation of New Vehicle for Hire Services

VANCOUVER, BC--(Marketwired - April 07, 2016) - An Ipsos online poll conducted on behalf of the Taxi Association of Vancouver shows that most Metro Vancouver residents want any new type of 'vehicle for hire' services (e.g. rideshare companies) to be subject to government safety and consumer protection regulations. Two-thirds (67%) of residents believe these new services should be subject to the 'same' regulations as taxi operators. A further 21% believe that these new services should not have the same regulations as taxi operators, but should still be regulated by government. Only 6% say these new services should not be regulated by government (5% are undecided).

Desired Government Requirements: Survey respondents were shown a list of 17 possible government requirements for new types of 'vehicle for hire' services. They were then asked to indicate which of these governments should require if new types of 'vehicle for hire' services are allowed to operate in their own municipality.

Metro Vancouver residents show strong support for these government requirements, with 16 of 17 requirements receiving public support from a majority of survey respondents. The top requirements (90%+ support) include vehicle safety inspections, driver background checks, income tax payments and proof of eligibility of drivers to work in Canada.

The full list of requirements and the percentage of Metro Vancouver residents who want governments to implement these requirements is as follows:

• Vehicles must pass regular safety inspections (95% say should be required)
• Drivers must successfully pass a police background check (93%)
• Companies and drivers must pay taxes on their incomes (91%)
• Drivers must provide proof that they are eligible to work in Canada (90%)
• Drivers must be licensed to drive a vehicle for hire (87%)
• Drivers must have proper commercial insurance (84%)
• Drivers must meet similar customer service standards as taxi operators (84%)
• Companies must collect and remit federal and provincial taxes (83%)
• Vehicles must meet similar environmental/green standards as taxi operators (83%)
• Drivers must obtain an operating license from their local municipality (80%)
• Drivers must offer the ability to pay via cash, debit, credit, or voucher (80%)
• A maximum allowable fare that can be charged even during the busiest periods (76%)
• Companies must use local drivers (69%)
• Vehicles must have proper 'for hire' signage displayed on the outside of the vehicle
  (66%)
• Drivers must take part in a training course offered by the Justice Institute (65%)
• Vehicles must have video cameras (63%)
• Companies must make an investment in the local community (45%)

These are the findings of an Ipsos poll conducted between March 22 and 28, 2016, on behalf of the Vancouver Taxi Association. For this survey, a sample of 800 Metro Vancouver residents from Ipsos' online panel was interviewed online. Weighting was then employed to balance demographics to ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the adult population according to Census data and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the poll is accurate to within +/ - 4.0 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, had all Metro Vancouver adults been polled. The credibility interval will be wider among subsets of the population. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to coverage error, and measurement error.

Ipsos is Canada's market intelligence leader and the country's leading provider of public opinion research. With operations in eight cities, Ipsos employs more than 600 research professionals and support staff in Canada. The company has the biggest network of telephone call centres in Canada, as well as the largest pre-recruited household and on-line panels. Ipsos' Canadian marketing research and public affairs practices are staffed with seasoned research consultants with extensive industry-specific backgrounds, offering the premier suite of research vehicles in Canada-all of which provide clients with actionable and relevant information. Ipsos is an Ipsos company, a leading global survey-based market research group. To learn more, visit www.ipsos.ca

For full tabular results, please visit our website at www.ipsos-na.com . News Releases are available at: http://www.ipsos-na.com/news-polls/

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