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Locked-out taxi drivers slowed traffic to a crawl around the Ottawa International Airport on Monday afternoon, leaving angry motorists fuming over the delays on one of the hottest days of the year.
The taxi drivers, members of the airport unit of Unifor Local 1688, were in the seventh day of protests against higher fees for the right to pick up fares at the airport.
At least 150 cabs drove slowed to about 20 km/h for two hours along routes near the airport, including Uplands Drive, the Airport Parkway and Hunt Club Road just as the afternoon rush hour was getting underway about 4 p.m.
“Our beef is not with the public, although the public might be getting a little bit inconvenienced,” said Abed Madi, the president of the airport unit of Unifor Local 1688. “We’re just trying to raise the issue.”
Some motorists resorted to attempting to get past the slow moving traffic by passing on the shoulder of the road or making U-turns; others showed their displeasure with shouts and gestures. Ottawa police patrolled the roads on motorcycles.
Madi said the union would likely stage more slow-moving protests in the coming days unless Coventry Connections, which owns a number of taxi lines in Ottawa, including Airport Taxi-branded cabs and Blue Line — sits down to negotiate a new fee.
Hanif Patni, the owner of Coventry Connections, said travellers haven’t been left stranded during the labour action. The airport authority brought in buses to shuttle passengers and cabs outside the airport unit have been picking passengers.
On Friday, Ontario Superior Court Justice Robert Beaudoin granted an injunction after the Ottawa International Airport Authority complained of harassment of airport staff, objects thrown at vehicles and protesters yelling at passengers and uttering racial slurs. On at least one day, protesting airport taxi drivers allowed their children to run into the road.
Beaudoin ruled that the protesters cannot harass, threaten or intimidate anyone from the picket line. Only 20 protesters can picket for 18 hours a day, and the number of taxis allowed to circle the airport roads was limited to 10 and can’t impede traffic.
Drivers were also banned from using electronic amplification devices.
The union said it began its protest on Aug. 1 after the transponders used to get into the airport were disabled. They drivers were locked out after a new contract was struck between Coventry Connections and the airport, which would see the fee paid by drivers for the exclusive right to pick up fares on the arrivals platform doubled.
The union says the increased fees are unacceptable in a climate where drivers are already losing money to Uber, the online app that markets itself as a ride-share company.
With files from Mike Carroccetto
mhurley@ottawacitizen.com
Twitter.com/meghan_hurley
查看原文...
The taxi drivers, members of the airport unit of Unifor Local 1688, were in the seventh day of protests against higher fees for the right to pick up fares at the airport.
At least 150 cabs drove slowed to about 20 km/h for two hours along routes near the airport, including Uplands Drive, the Airport Parkway and Hunt Club Road just as the afternoon rush hour was getting underway about 4 p.m.
“Our beef is not with the public, although the public might be getting a little bit inconvenienced,” said Abed Madi, the president of the airport unit of Unifor Local 1688. “We’re just trying to raise the issue.”
Some motorists resorted to attempting to get past the slow moving traffic by passing on the shoulder of the road or making U-turns; others showed their displeasure with shouts and gestures. Ottawa police patrolled the roads on motorcycles.
Madi said the union would likely stage more slow-moving protests in the coming days unless Coventry Connections, which owns a number of taxi lines in Ottawa, including Airport Taxi-branded cabs and Blue Line — sits down to negotiate a new fee.
Hanif Patni, the owner of Coventry Connections, said travellers haven’t been left stranded during the labour action. The airport authority brought in buses to shuttle passengers and cabs outside the airport unit have been picking passengers.
On Friday, Ontario Superior Court Justice Robert Beaudoin granted an injunction after the Ottawa International Airport Authority complained of harassment of airport staff, objects thrown at vehicles and protesters yelling at passengers and uttering racial slurs. On at least one day, protesting airport taxi drivers allowed their children to run into the road.
Beaudoin ruled that the protesters cannot harass, threaten or intimidate anyone from the picket line. Only 20 protesters can picket for 18 hours a day, and the number of taxis allowed to circle the airport roads was limited to 10 and can’t impede traffic.
Drivers were also banned from using electronic amplification devices.
The union said it began its protest on Aug. 1 after the transponders used to get into the airport were disabled. They drivers were locked out after a new contract was struck between Coventry Connections and the airport, which would see the fee paid by drivers for the exclusive right to pick up fares on the arrivals platform doubled.
The union says the increased fees are unacceptable in a climate where drivers are already losing money to Uber, the online app that markets itself as a ride-share company.
With files from Mike Carroccetto
mhurley@ottawacitizen.com
Twitter.com/meghan_hurley
查看原文...
