Winnipeg taxi drivers are banding together to stop alternative transportation services like Uber from starting their engines in the city. 

“[The] Winnipeg Taxi Alliance is a coalition of drivers and employees of the taxi industry, many of whom are... small business people,” reads the alliance’s official homepage, TrustedTransit.com. 

Drivers from Unicity Taxi and Duffy’s Taxi make up the alliance. 

“Vehicles must meet demanding safety requirements and drivers are trained and screened for your safety,” the site says. A Taxi Alliance spokesman did not return The Uniter’s requests for comment. 

“Illegal ride brokerages, such as Uber, break these rules by calling themselves a technology company, rather than a transportation company, in an attempt to limit their own liability.” 

To some extent, the alliance’s comments are true. 

Dustin Pernitsky, 26, was curious about Uber and so he sent an email to the company when it advertised last year looking for potential drivers in Winnipeg. 

In an email sent back to Pernitsky, not once does Uber claim they focus on transportation. Rather, their email states the program “works hard to ensure that we are connecting riders with the safest rides on the road.” 

“I think they’re using technology to improve a service and bring it to the public at a cheaper rate,” Pernitsky says. “They’re finally giving taxi companies... some competition. If consumers can get a more convenient product for cheaper, that’s a good thing.” 

With Winnipeg’s downtown growing at a rapid rate, Pernitsky says people are reluctant to visit the area because of the pains of paying for parking. 

“After hours, when the buses stop running, your only option is a cab,” Pernitsky says. “When it’s 2:30 a.m. and I’m wasted, I don’t want to have to fight... to get a cab driving by. I want an Uber driver to pick me up.” 

Pernitsky isn’t alone. According to Digital Marketing Stats, more than eight million users worldwide have opted to use Uber instead of taking a taxi since 2014. 

Dan Huen isn’t one of those eight million, but he’s passionate about bringing the ride-sharing service to Winnipeg. 

Huen, who works in marketing locally, posted on Facebook asking his 2,313 friends to blow up the “anti-Uber” feed that’s thrived on Twitter under the hashtag #trustedtransit. 

He ends his post with a simple message: “Protest!” 

“It’s important to have a choice. I like the idea of an alternative to the cabs and transit system,” Huen says. “Winnipeg is dominated by two large cab companies and when there are only two choices for transportation, certain checks and balances can fall to the wayside. Things like rider safety, driver confidence, timeliness, and rates.” 

Huen says safety is the biggest issue when it comes to Winnipeg’s taxis and he recounts bad run-ins his friends have had with cabs. 

One friend was left laying in the snow after a 10-minute drive from Osborne Village. He also lost his wallet. 

Another friend’s girlfriend was touched inappropriately in the front seat of a cab, he says. 

“The driver took advantage... and began rubbing the inside of her leg. When he did, she jumped out of the cab at a red light and approached some cops. The cops drove her home, but did nothing to the driver,” Huen says. 

Karlee Liljegren, a University of Winnipeg student, says when she first used Uber in San Francisco, she felt unsafe. 

She had never tried the service before and had heard mixed reviews. But, her uneasiness quickly subsided. 

“The first person that picked me and my friend up was female, and she explained the whole process to us and definitely made us feel more comfortable,” Liljegren says. “After that, we didn’t have many concerns at all.” 

Though Liljegren says she supports Uber, she also agrees with the Winnipeg Taxi Alliance’s message. 

“I think the taxi alliance is fair. They have their right to stand up and defend their business,” she says. “But in the same sense... if you don’t want to lose out on business, provide a better service.”

Published in Volume 70, Number 5 of The Uniter (October 8, 2015)