Halifax takes next step towards full-fledged taxi industry review
Posted Jun 27, 2017 05:59:27 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
HALIFAX – The state of the municipality’s taxi industry has been front of mind for many in Halifax since a string of reported sexual assaults last summer, and now the municipality is moving forward with a full review.
A request for proposals has been issued, beginning the search for a consultant who will conduct the review.
But while passenger safety concerns have been a vocal aspect since those reports and the acquittal of a local cabbie on sexual assault charges, it’s also been a very long time since there has been a review – more than 20 years.
“Since that time there’s been significant advancements in technologies, in training, in programming for accessibility and those kinds of issues,” HRM Spokesperson Lucas Wide told Global News. “So it seemed like an appropriate time.”
The RFP outlines what a consultant will be responsible for reviewing: passenger and driver safety, cultural sensitivity training, accessibility and service standards.
The request closes on Jul. 12. A consultant will be hired by the end of July, and the report is expected to go to council before the end of the year.
