Calgary councillor calls for city to consider cap on ride-share drivers

Andrew Jeffrey · CBC News

· Posted: May 12, 2025 12:03 PM EDT | Last Updated: 8 minutes ago

A Calgary metropolis councillor is calling for a bounds connected the fig of ride-share drivers operating astir the metropolis to beryllium considered.

Ward 5 Coun. Raj Dhaliwal is bringing a announcement of question to the city's enforcement committee connected Tuesday that calls for medication to analyze a imaginable fixed oregon population-based headdress connected ride-share drivers.

While the city's Vehicle-for-Hire bylaw maintains a fixed bounds connected taxi licences, Calgary does not person a akin headdress connected ride-share companies similar Uber and Lyft.

Dhaliwal's announcement of question says city records amusement determination were much than 16,581 progressive ride-share operator licences last year.

Dhaliwal said he's heard concerns astir the taxi industry's aboriginal ever since helium was elected to assembly 4 years ago. And helium added that ride-share drivers person besides said they judge having so many drivers in Calgary is having a antagonistic effect connected wages.

"This is not astatine each taxi against ride-sharing," Dhaliwal said, adding that his extremity is for drivers successful some industries to gain a decent wage.

"Some [ride-sharing drivers] are besides telling maine that with these kinds of licences retired successful the market, it's hard. It's hard to marque a living."

Some Calgary Uber drivers joined a onslaught crossed Canada last twelvemonth implicit dropping wages and moving conditions, with an uptick successful drivers flooding the marketplace cited arsenic a crushed for declining wages.

In an emailed connection connected Saturday, an Uber spokesperson argued a ride-share headdress would marque it harder for its workers to gain money, and for Calgarians to get astir the metropolis affordably and reliably.

"The City of Calgary presently has a 120-page bylaw that regulates ride-sharing. Another survey is not an effectual usage of clip oregon money, particularly erstwhile the metropolis has larger issues to resolve," Uber spokesperson Keerthana Rang said via email.

The question would nonstop metropolis medication to hole a study examining the feasibility, benefits and risks of tools, including a cap, to negociate the maturation successful ride-share drivers.

The study would besides beryllium expected to analyse the imaginable effect of a headdress on wheelchair-accessible service, marketplace competition, existing contracts with the airdrome and large lawsuit venues, and immoderate hazard of unlicenced operations oregon litigation.

The study would beryllium presented to assembly by the 3rd 4th of 2023.

The rules ride-share drivers look successful Calgary person been debated since Uber entered the marketplace a decennary ago. Associated Cabs president Roger Richard argued in 2015 that ride-share companies should travel the aforesaid rules arsenic taxi companies.

Calgary wouldn't beryllium the lone Canadian metropolis considering a ride-share cap. In 2023, Toronto temporarily capped the fig of ride-share licences successful its city, but backed disconnected pursuing a ineligible situation from Uber.

In December, Toronto assembly revisited the issue, with the metropolis calling for unit to contiguous much accusation astir the effect a headdress would have.

The occupation Dhaliwal points to successful past conversations connected the ride-share companies' spot successful Calgary is that drivers didn't consciousness included. 

"Engage these people. Listen to them for once, please," Dhaliwal said. 

"And engagement is not conscionable listening. Engagement is having a two-way speech and considering their ideas, what they person to recommend and going backmost to them with immoderate of the answers"

Naeem Chaudhry, who worked successful the taxi manufacture for much than 30 years, said he's talked to metropolis councillors and officials connected this contented for years. He argued that due to the fact that apps similar Uber and Lyft tin person arsenic galore vehicles successful Calgary arsenic they want, galore drivers are near incapable to marque a living, and the taxi industry's aboriginal is successful jeopardy.

"If we support moving successful the aforesaid direction, I deliberation we'll destruct the taxi manufacture wrong the adjacent 5 years, possibly 10 years," Chaudhry said.

If approved astatine enforcement committee connected Tuesday, assembly volition ballot connected the announcement of question successful June.