ANTIGONISH: The price for catching a cab in Antigonish has increased by $1 and will now cost riders $8.
The resolution was approved unanimously during the Town of Antigonish’s regular council meeting on March 21.
Mayor Laurie Boucher told reporters following the meeting that gas prices have been steadily rising over the past few months, and to make matters worse, the price of oil has recently risen again.
“Our taxi cab industry is a vital component of our transportation network, (and) this request to adjust fares is not unique to Antigonish,” Boucher said. “Other municipalities across Nova Scotia have received requests from their local industry in response to the pressures that have come with the sharp rise in gas prices and other expenses.”
Just like everyone else, the taxi industry has been impacted, and the mayor suggested it was no surprise that they would come to council for fares to be increased.
“Everyone is feeling the pressure of the increased cost of living,” Boucher said. “The town is not aiming to put additional stress on individuals who rely on regular taxi service to move about our community.”
In correspondence to council, the three taxi companies serving the town and county, Student Taxi, Captain’s Cab, and Tartan Taxi, requested the amendment to the taxi cab bylaw.
Their concern centered on the price for transportation of passengers from any one place within the town to another place within the town, which came with a flat rate of $7.
They suggested the taxi industry in Antigonish would not be able to continue to serve the community based on the sum of $7, and highlighted the recent inflation of gas prices and other expenses have put significant strain on the taxi industry.
“At the time of the submission of the letter, the price of gas in our region was $1.78.8,” Director of Community Development Steve Scannell told council. “I met with the owners and operators to discuss what an acceptable rate would be, after some discussions and a bit of negotiations we settled on a dollar.”
Scannell suggested the increase needed to be reflective of the taxi’s service base, which are low income and fixed income people, and noted the option to increase the taxi flat rate would only last eight weeks and expire on May 16, 2022.
Town staff will conduct a rate review over the next eight weeks to determine the structure of the rate, variances for changes in time of day, type of service, and additional charges for multiple stops.
“Our goal is to help provide the immediate relief the taxi industry needs,” Boucher said. “And then to fairly look at modernizing the rate structure to better reflect the needs of the industry and its users.”
The last amendment to taxi cab fares was made in 2015 in response to then climbing gas prices, when the cost per fare was changed from $6 to $7.
“It’s a delicate balance. If we give them the ability to raise it too high, they will, so we have to kind of let the market adjust,” Boucher said. “With the price of gas going up, that’s out of the pocket of the business owner and the driver as well, but you have to remember that the large majority of the people who use the taxi cabs are people with low income, with financial troubles or barriers in place.”
With events like Nova Scotia Summer Fest and the Antigonish Highland Games set to return, the mayor says they are preparing for an uptick in activity this summer.
The comments were made following the regular monthly council meeting, which featured a full gallery.
“It was an exciting meeting tonight to, first have a crowd in chambers, that we’re not used to having over the past two years,” Mayor Laurie Boucher told reporters. “But the presentations on the agenda when we talk about Keppoch, Festival Antigonish, Highland Games, those are things that we’ve all been missing for so long.”
The mayor said it’s fantastic to have these key event, which act as a tourism boost to the area, as they anticipate a significant amount of movement throughout the province this summer.
“It’s very exciting, we’re hoping this is going to be the pick me up for the businesses in town that they’ve been waiting for, for the past two years,” Boucher said. “We’re very hopeful and very positive that it’s going to be a good summer for Antigonish.”
When asked how the town balances that with the presence of COVID-19 still in the community, the mayor indicated the town has followed the recommendation of Nova Scotia Public Health from the beginning of the pandemic, which is what they’ll continue to do.
Although mask restrictions have been removed, and most of the restrictions have been relaxed, Boucher suggested Antigonish will still follow the advice of Nova Scotia’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Robert Strang, and encourage people to be diligent and careful as the province goes through Phase 3 of the pandemic.
“We’ve backed Dr. Strang when he talked about vaccinations, we had no hesitation to close town hall when we were asked to, council and staff were all vaccination 100 per cent,” she said. “We did what we had to do.”
The town is getting the input of the business community on the sidewalk café bylaw, as the town prepares for the upcoming summer patio season.
told reporters the minor amendment to the sidewalk café bylaw comes as the town is addressing their accessibility needs.
“We’re putting an accessibility lens on everything and the accessibility lens on this bylaw is particularly important, because it actually interrupts how people get around,” Boucher said. “When they put them up how much of the sidewalk does it take, how accessible is the route around the sidewalk are all things we have to look at.”
During the meeting, Director of Community Development Steve Scannell advised council this was in response to a few issues raised by the business community.
“Things like, businesses requesting earlier start times for construction,” Scannell said. “We are looking at it to improve some of the enforcement mechanisms we have in place.”
Scannell suggested before approving first reading, the town wants to consult the business community directly.
“Especially restaurants and hotels mainly because through COVID, sidewalk cafés have become a way for restaurants to expand their space, and they have become very popular with people, eating outside,” Scannell said. “And also, it’s to check with the business community to see if there are other parts of the bylaw that may be adjusted for opportunities, that we don’t see the way that they do.”
The mayor suggested it’s a wonderful thing senior staff have to re-address this bylaw, as it means local businesses are turning to a low-cost expansion option, while also utilizing an outdoor space.
“This is a great reason to have to re-address a bylaw,” Boucher said. “Look at The Maritime Inn, just down the street and their outdoor patio, they’ve added some beautiful outdoor dining, and there are others who have or are looking to as well.”