TORONTO – Hundreds of taxi drivers are working in Toronto with some kind of criminal history, an investigation by the Toronto Star has revealed.
The city has over 10,000 taxi drivers and according to the newspaper, hundreds have a criminal past ranging from highway traffic act offences to serious crimes including assault, sexual assault and drunk driving.
“I wouldn’t want to be in a cab with a driver convicted of crime,” one Torontonian told Global News reporter Lama Nicolas.
The city of Toronto’s Licensing Chief Bruce Robertson says that system in place to conduct criminal background checks may not be efficient enough.
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“We are reviewing our process in terms of how many times we do background checks and perhaps annually, perhaps every year would be better, just so we won’t miss cases that fall through cracks,” Robertson said.
When a driver is flagged by city staff, their license cannot be renewed.
However, a driver can go to a tribunal made up of civilians chosen by city council who can decide whether or not the driver is a risk behind the wheel of a taxi.
If city staff do not flag drivers however, the system currently allows drivers to move between agencies.
According to Beck Taxi operations manager Kristine Hubbard, some drivers exploit these loopholes by constantly moving from one agency to the next.
Both the city and taxi companies are currently reviewing the system.
“The city is working hard and we’re working with them, there’s a review of entire industry at this moment, loopholes, problems with licensing system are being addressed,” Hubbard said.
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