Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, ANTITRUST NEWS: Canada Competition Bureau recommends new forms of competition for Toronto’s regulatory framework for taxi services, (Feb 19, 2014)

The Canada Competition Bureau announced yesterday that it has provided a submission to the City of Toronto in response to its review of the taxicab industry, a process aimed at evaluating Toronto’s regulatory regime for taxicab services.

The Bureau has received numerous complaints regarding a wide range of issues concerning the taxi industry, including would-be drivers being unable to obtain plates, exclusive deals between airport authorities and taxi companies, predatory pricing in the form of flat rate charges, and service complaints concerning wait times and prices. While not all of these issues require remedial action, they do highlight the importance of ensuring that those responsible for the regulatory oversight over industry access, licensing and other salient competitive factors properly consider the impact their rules and policies have on competition, the Bureau stated in its submission.

It was recommended that the City’s regulatory framework be designed to promote competition for the benefit of consumers. In particular, it recommends that the City consider issuing a number of new taxi licenses and amending regulations to allow for the use of new cost-saving software applications designed to arrange and pay for passenger motor vehicle transportation services.

The Bureau will continue to provide advice to regulators to assist them in implementing policies that achieve their objectives in a minimally intrusive way where market forces are insufficient to achieve certain policy objectives. Regulation that restricts competition more than an equally effective alternative imposes unnecessary costs on Canadian consumers and businesses.

News: Antitrust