The first taxi fare hike in Saint John since 2016 has been given final approval by the city’s Common Council.
Proposed changes to the city’s Vehicle for Hire Bylaw passed the third and final reading at Monday’s council meeting.
Among the suite of changes approved was a 55-cent increase to taxi fares, from $1.10 to $1.65 per kilometre.
The waiting rate has also increased from 8.3 cents for every 10 seconds to 13.8 cents.
The Transit Commission recommended the fare increase following a recent public hearing.
“The industry is under inflationary pressures and these pressures are threatening the viability of ongoing operations,” said a recent staff report to council.
Staff noted that, in addition to record-high gas prices, the availability and cost of replacement parts for repairs and replacement vehicles have also increased in a historical fashion.
Taxi industry reps told the commission that without rate changes, more vehicles would be taken off the road, and service availability would drop.
“The changes recommended are an effort to maintain the viability of taxi service in Saint John,” said the staff report.
Other changes approved on Monday night provide for:
- The use of a tablet instead of a meter for the calculation of fares;
- Fixed drop-off locations to enable executive service and other shuttle services such as an airport/hotel shuttle;
- Suspension of licenses to align with motor vehicle driving license suspensions;
- The use of electric vehicles;
- Staggering of licenses throughout the year instead of all renewing on the same date; and
- Allowing vehicles of eight years of age or newer to operate as a taxi cab, up from seven.
Many of the changes were already approved by council through a resolution in May 2020.
Staff said some changes, such as enabling the use of tablets, may limit downtime to repair meters and could be a lower cost to operate, while other changes will simplify the regulations.
