Toronto cabbies stage protest against Uber; Will Canada’s largest city regulate the ride-hailing app?

Taxi drivers of Toronto, Canada's largest city, park their cars three-deep on Queen Street West outside city hall during a protest against car-sharing service Uber in Toronto, Ontario June 1, 2015.

Outside city hall, Toronto cabbies parked three-deep and beeped their horns, while others moved in a slow procession through downtown, clogging much of the business district. The move signifies taxi drivers fear from the potential threat Uber could give to their livelihood.

Many taxi drivers expressed their feelings regarding the issue. They said that the app could hurt their income by reducing more or less sixty percent. Cabbies explained that traditional taxi's price runs $10, while Uber's car sharing service would only cost customers $5.

Perhaps, Toronto protesters' rage is directed toward the budget option app called UberX, in which drivers can use their personal vehicles, as a threat to public safety. But, it was told that Uber's other service uses licensed drivers.

But many cabbies do not blame customers for choosing Uber over traditional taxis. Instead, they want the company to do it legally.

Will Toronto regulate the company? According to reports, the city is currently seeking an "injunction to halt Uber's operations" except the Uber and all its drivers are licensed.

Despite the cabbies anger at car-sharing app, Toronto mayor John Tory is said to have no problem with the ride-hailing apps as "part of the contemporary landscape."

It is said that Uber simply wants to supply a technology allowing drivers and passengers to find each other, and it should not be treated as a "broker". The taxi protest is said to be "counter-productive."

In a recent interview, Uber Canada spokeswoman Susie said, "Rather than blocking roads and preventing people from getting where they need to be, we're focused on meeting the needs of Toronto's riders and drivers, who are all too often left out of the debate."

The case is court file no. CV-14-516288. The hearing for Uber and Toronto's cabbies continues.