Toronto bylaw officers crack down on price gouging during Taylor Swift's Eras Tour
'Count on getting caught if you are gouging,' Mayor Olivia Chow said on Thursday
Toronto bylaw enforcement officers are cracking down on price gouging near the Rogers Centre during the remaining Taylor Swift concerts.
Twenty-five officers are policing everything from inflated parking prices to exorbitant taxi costs, the illegal vending of unofficial merchandise to the unlicensed operation of food trucks. They're also keeping an eye on vehicle-for-hire operators, pedicab drivers, peddlers, hawkers and food truck vendors near Front and John streets, the city says.
Mayor Olivia Chow said the enforcement officers are working to protect concert-goers as Swift wraps up her Eras Tour in Toronto. Swift, who performed on three nights last week, is playing Thursday, Friday and Saturday this week.
"Count on getting caught if you are gouging," Chow told reporters on Thursday. "They know full well what they're doing.
Chow urged people to call 311 if they think they are being gouged.
"It's a question of fairness... Already the prices are so high, whether it's the tickets or the hotel rooms. But if you add on the vehicle-for-hire, or the parking lots, all those things — it's just not fair," Chow said of operators who choose to inflate prices.
Businesses need to operate within city rules, official says
Carleton Grant, executive director of the city's municipal licensing and standards, said on Thursday that visitors to Toronto need to be able to interact with businesses safely. Businesses need to operate within city rules, he added.
"We want to ensure that people who are coming to the concert are having a good experience," Grant said. "The consumer needs to know when getting into the car what the prices are going to be, what to expect and what you are going to pay at the end of the day."
Grant said the city has issued 96 tickets to commercial parking lot operators and 97 tickets to vehicle-for-hire operators. Of the tickets to vehicle-for-hire operators, 21 were given to taxi drivers and 76 to drivers working for ride-hailing companies.
Some parking lot operators who usually charge $20 have hiked their prices to $40 and $50 — an increase not permitted under city bylaws, he said.
The fine for breaking the rules can range from $200 to $400. The city rules say operators have to post their hourly rates and then charge those rates.
Taxi drivers have been ticketed for not having their tariff card posted and not keeping logs, while ride-hailing drivers have been ticketed for soliciting rides, not having a sign in the window and not having their cell phones safely secured. These drivers have to use their respective apps, he said.
Grant said the bylaw officers are also ticketing food trucks that aren't legally licensed to operate within the city. Some have come in from out of town for the event.
For anyone selling items to Swift fans, he says: "It's a great opportunity to make money. What you need to do is do your homework, do your due diligence, and make sure you are doing it within the city's rules and regulations."
With files from Shawn Jeffords and Muriel Draaisma