Major traffic delays were reported in the city’s financial district over the lunch hour Thursday as hundreds of cab drivers protested Uber’s presence in the city.
The drivers parked their vehicles in the southbound lanes on Bay Street and along Queen Street in the vicinity of Nathan Phillips Square for about two hours in the latest demonstration against the smart-phone based service.
The protest comes as the company’s Toronto operations hang in the balance.
The city is awaiting a June court hearing where its lawyers are expected to seek an injunction that could put the brakes on the service permanently, however in recent weeks Mayor John Tory has spoken of a desire to work with Uber to come up with a regulatory solution.
Tory's spokesperson Amanda Galbraith slammed the protest in a series of tweets calling the demonstration "disappointing."
"Was the disruption about better service for the people of Toronto? Lower fares? More choice? More convenience? Unfortunately not," she wrote.
Instead of working twrds a solution, they chose to disrupt the lives of hundreds while doing little to advance the public interest. #TOpoli
— Amanda Galbraith (@agalbraith) May 14, 2015
Coun. Gord Perks took issue with Galbraith's comments and fired back in defence of the protest.
"What's most disappointing is you seem unconcerned that Uber is breaking the law to increase profit, but object to lawful protest," Perks tweeted Thursday afternoon.
@agalbraith You might not be aware that they were protesting in favour of the same position the City of Toronto has taken in the Courts
— Gord Perks (@gordperks) May 14, 2015
In a statement issued to CP24, Uber Canada Spokesperson Susie Heath criticized the protesting cab drivers for not looking out for the best interest of Torontonians.
"Instead of blocking the roads, we're at the table engaged in an open dialogue to help advance the best interests of Torontonians. We’re changing how people get around our city and improving the lives of thousands of local driver partners by providing flexible earning opportunities," Heath said. "Our focus remains on working with city officials to create a sensible regulatory framework for ridesharing, the benefits of which are already being enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of Torontonians."
Uber operates in 230 cities across the world and has frequently faced criticism from taxi drivers who say the service does not provide the same level of service and safety that licenced cabs do.
So taxi drivers are blocking streets to protest? How can anyone tell the diff between protesting and any other day? #TOpoli
— Jim Ducharme (@hugeheadca) May 14, 2015
"Cabs block traffic on Bay St to protest Uber pic.twitter.com/4rstFNEfVJ" *calls Uber Cab b/c regular taxi drivers are busy*
— Cruella Deville (@_ItsHumanNature) May 14, 2015
@CP24 May not be able to get a taxi right now, but there's plenty of @Uber drivers around!
— Ryan Bennett (@ryanottob) May 14, 2015
Crazy amount of Taxi Cabs & their drivers r blocking up Bay Street in btwn Dundas & Queen St. - how r they allowed to do that?! @CP24
— Marianne (@MarianneFromTO) May 14, 2015
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