The word dismay hardly describes the feeling, which overcame me as I read Tim Lasiuta's story about the Red Deer cabbie who lost his fare because he had no Innisfail business licence.
The cabbie had pulled over to check a map and was told by an attending town bylaw officer he had to boot out his Red Deer-bound passenger because the cab company had no Innisfail business licence and thus could not pick up passengers in the town.
This ever-so-brilliant Business Licence Bylaw update was apparently passed by the previous council. Hopefully, the present council has the foresight to see and correct its obvious weaknesses.
Innisfail taxi service runs from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Sunday, and from 9 p.m. to 3 a.m. Friday and Saturday. Coffee row conversation tells us it is devilishly difficult if not impossible to get a cab within town limits later in the evening on the weekends.
Please consider the non-business taxpayers of Innisfail who just might feel the streets are not rolled up at 6 p.m. during the week, when our taxi service ends, and may need a taxi to Red Deer or Calgary or wherever they might want to travel.
In an effort to "level the playing field for all service providers," the town gets the gold mine and home-owning taxpayers get the shaft.
How can it possibly level the playing field when there is no player in the game from Innisfail in the first place? If there is no taxi service here after 6 p.m., there is no player here after 6 p.m. If the two Innisfail taxi drivers are too busy with local clientele to make a Red Deer run, there is no damage being done. The only persons hurt by this new and improved bylaw are Innisfailians who want or need a taxi. Get it?
Am I the only person who can see the utter stupidity of this situation? Is there really any difference between being picked up here or dropped off here? It's still a trip to or from Red Deer.
Let's consider a couple of "what ifs". What if somebody has a medical appointment after 6 p.m. at Red Deer hospital and has no other means of travel? What if somebody has a late flight out of Calgary? There is fabulous entertainment at Red Deer College, most of which happens after 6 p.m. There are not too many Red Deer dinner theatre presentations which begin before 6 p.m. Concerts do not happen before 6 p.m.
Many and varied are the reasons for cab service here after 6 p.m. To deprive the town's taxpayers of this service by demanding a business licence for visiting cabs is bureaucratic nonsense.
There are thousands of seniors in Innisfail who do not feel comfortable behind the wheel after dark. They need cab service. Can we please stop with this absurdity? Can we please invoke some common sense here?
The story read far more like Innisfail Town Hall was merrily on its way to another another tax grab. Alas, once again I am forced to ask, who's next on the business licence list, the Girl Guide cookie sellers or minor hockey kids on bottle drives?
Bryan Goulding is an Innisfail resident and a former well-known Central Alberta journalist.
