Police say Uber crackdown not related to video sting

‘The operation last night was planned probably about a month ago’

A crackdown on Uber drivers this week was not related to the release of a video shot surreptitiously by Ottawa cabbies and posted to the Internet, Ottawa Police Chief Charles Bordeleau said Friday.

“The operation last night was planned probably about a month ago, a couple of weeks ago, before these videos started hitting YouTube,” Bordeleau told the Citizen in an interview.

Police and city bylaw officers teamed up to target drivers from the controversial Uber ride-hailing service and laid 32 charges, of which 20 were under bylaws for operating without a taxi licence and operating an unlicensed taxi cab. The charges carry fines of $615 and $260, respectively. Two of the drivers were repeat offenders, police said.

Bordeleau said such joint operations are not new.

“We work regularly with city bylaw on a number of different files and, as we have in the past on the illegal taxi file, we’ve worked with them before on different types of enforcement,” he said.

“More specifically, or recently, with the complaints around Uber we advised them that we would partner up with them to support the role they play in enforcing the bylaws.”

He noted that police officers are able to additionally press charges under the Highway Traffic Act, and in the operation this week laid charges including obstructing a licence plate, using a device while driving and failing to show proof of insurance.

Thursday’s crackdown came two days after frustrated Ottawa taxi drivers posted a video they said could provide bylaw officials with evidence of Uber’s continued illegal operation in Ottawa. That video prompted Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson to suggest the cab drivers from the video looked like “thugs.”

The city said video footage alone would not be enough to support a charge of an unlicensed taxicab operation, and bylaw officers would still be required to conduct their own independent investigation.

On Thursday, Const. Marc Soucy said police are advising taxi drivers not to take matters into their own hands.

Susie Heath, spokeswoman for the Canadian division of Californiabased Uber, said in a statement Friday that the company continues to stand by its drivers. She also noted that ride-hailing by way of an Internet application, which Uber refers to as “ride-sharing,” is a unique business model different than the taxi business.

“Rather than taking enforcement action, we believe that a regulatory solution is the best path forward and look forward to continuing our work with Mayor Watson and Ottawa City Council to establish a regulatory framework for ridesharing in Ottawa,” Heath wrote.

Before this week, bylaw officers had laid a total of 110 charges against 54 Uber drivers since the company launched operations in Ottawa in October 2014.

Thirty seven drivers have pleaded guilty to 74 charges, with fines totalling more than $22,000, the city said.