Taxi drivers meet in Montreal ahead of general strike Monday
About 1,200 taxi drivers met in Montreal on Sunday to show their dissatisfaction with Bill 17 before a planned strike on Monday.
Drivers, permit holders and taxi industry advocates are calling for the total withdrawal of Bill 17, which was tabled Wednesday by Quebec Transport Minister François Bonnardel.
Taxi drivers across the province are going on strike as of 7 a.m. Monday in order to protest bill, which makes more room for ride-booking apps like Uber.
Abdallah Homsy, a spokesperson for the taxi industry, called the proposed legislation "totally inhumane" and said it would throw thousands of people into bankruptcy.
Serge Lebreux, who represents taxis outside of Montreal, said that this issue affects a great number of people outside the urban centres in Quebec.
"There will be a strike from one end of Quebec to the other, " said Lebreux. "Deregulating taxis to make Uber happy — it shows a lack of understanding of how important taxis are as an essential service in the regions. Not all Quebecers live in downtown Montreal."
The STM said its contract with nine taxi companies will be impacted by the strike. In a statement, it said that previously booked trips on its adapted transit service will be honoured, but other users should plan alternate ways of getting around on Monday.
Gaetan Barrette, the former Quebec health minister and current opposition critic for transport, was also at the meeting on Sunday.
He said taxi drivers are entitled to proper compensation and called Coalition Avenir Québec's plan "unfair."
Barrette suggested that the government needs to do a more "in depth analysis" to determine what kind of payment taxi permit owners should be given.
In response to the concerns raised by representatives from the industry, Bonnardel agreed to a meeting with representatives from the taxi industry on Tuesday.
If passed, Bill 17 would abolish taxi permits, remove territorial restrictions and impose a single set of requirements on all operators.
The province announced last Monday that it will spend another $250 million to compensate taxi drivers whose permit value has dropped since Uber's arrival, raising the total compensation package to $500 million.
Along with their general strike action, taxi drivers will also be protesting in front of riding offices and the headquarters of the transport commission.
