Winnipeg taxi association puts promotional campaign in gear

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This article was published 04/12/2024 (674 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

In response to competition from ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft, the Winnipeg Community Taxi Association has launched a new campaign promoting the advantages of using cabs.

The association is advertising a website, winnipegtaxi.ca, as part of its #TaxiAdvantage initiative.

“Our aim is to educate Winnipeggers about the improvements in taxi services,” said Abhishek Tara, a spokesperson for the campaign.

“We (have been) serving Winnipeggers for more than five decades and the Winnipeg taxi industry has evolved to meet modern requirements and customers’ expectations.”

State-of-the-art dispatch services customers can contact by phone or through apps and wheelchair-accessible vehicles are some of the improvements Unicity Taxi and Duffy’s Taxi, the companies that make up the association, have made in recent years, the campaign highlights.

The association is promoting the fact, unlike Uber and Lyft, businesses in the taxi industry are locally owned and operated. Taxis are equipped with cameras and shields for the safety of drivers and passengers and they offer fixed rates with no surge pricing.

“The main advantage is that our drivers are professionally trained,” Tara said.

In order to qualify for a licence from the City of Winnipeg’s Vehicle for Hire department, taxi drivers must do 10 days of training through St. James-Assiniboia Continuing Education, as well as one day at the Independent Living Resource Centre that shows them how to best serve customers with disabilities.

Grant Heather, Winnipeg manager of vehicles for hire, said it’s good to see the taxi industry promoting itself.

“They’ve come a long way in the last six or seven years to make a number of improvements,” he said. “They should be letting Winnipeggers know about that.

“People want competition. Winnipeggers should have an opportunity to choose the best option that meets their needs.”

Winnipeg’s vehicle-for-hire industry provided 8.9 million rides in 2023, according to Heather.

Taxi companies gave 49.5 per cent of those rides, while personal transport providers like Uber and limousine companies covered 50.5 per cent.

aaron.epp@freepress.mb.ca