Iqaluit council to consider taxi fare hike

Iqaluit residents may have to pay an extra loonie for a taxi this spring if city council passes a proposed fare raise next month.

Residents had a chance to give their two cents on the proposed raise — from $5 for a one-way ride to $6 — during a special public meeting Thursday. But despite that meeting being well-advertised, the only people who attended were members of the city's taxi committee and several cab drivers.

"There was nobody that takes cabs on a normal basis there to voice any concerns, questions, suggestions, complaints or anything else," said Craig Dunphy, the general manager of Pai-Pa Taxi in Iqaluit.

Dunphy proposed the raise to the city late last year, saying rising costs of gas and other expenses have made it difficult for drivers to earn a decent living. The last increase in Iqaluit cab fares was in 2004, when theyrose to $5 from $4.50. Dunphy said the increase would not apply to elders.

"The members of the committee are interested in making sure that the taxi industry is fair for the citizens of Iqaluit, and also fair for the people that provide that service, the taxi drivers," said Deputy Mayor Al Hayward, who chairs the taxi committee.

"We've come up with a recommendation that we could possibly be moving the rate from $5 to $6, but we really wanted to get some input from the general public to see how they would react to that."

Hayward said councilplans todiscuss the raise at the April 10 meeting. If passed, Dunphy said he expects it to be in effect by May 1.