Improving taxi service: A statement from Mayor Nenshi

 

It’s no secret in Calgary: taxi service in our city must get better. While we generally have a safe and reliable system, we've heard from Calgarians time and time again that our taxi system needs improvement. Taxis need to be available when and where we need them. But our regulatory regime has not been able to make this happen as well as it should.

Today, your City Council took a significant step toward improving taxi service in Calgary. Here are a few highlights:

• First, Council authorized the issue of 55 new accessible taxi plate licenses to eligible drivers. These include a number of performance conditions, including that the holder of the plate personally drives a minimum of 981 hours per year and that these plates be in service between 10pm and 4am on Friday and Saturday nights. 
• Second, Council approved performance benchmarks to reinforce reasonable levels of taxi service. In the past, Council approved a certain number of cab licenses issued based on a ratio to Calgary’s population, but did not really enforce when and how these cabs would be in service. This hasn't worked as well as it should to create consistent and reasonable service. A benchmark for acceptable service means The City will be able to ensure that cabs are in use when customers need them. 
• Third, The City will rely much more on data for good regulation. We will require that industry share vehicle GPS and other data from existing taxi meters so that The City can determine if the plates are in use when they are supposed to be in use. This data will also be a great resource to Council for making good future decisions about the taxi industry including whether more taxis are actually required on city streets. 
• Fourth, The City will hire two additional taxi inspectors and a data analyst to monitor compliance. These new positions will be covered by a modest increase to license fees. 
• And, fifth, Council approved the introduction of stiff penalties for non-compliance with licensing conditions such as when a plate must be in operation to serve customers. 

An important result of these changes will be better data for Council so we can make better decisions to improve taxi access and availability for Calgarians. Smart benchmarks, measurement, and enforcement will ensure that the taxi industry will provide a higher level of service.

It’s reasonable for Calgarians to expect a high-quality and reliable taxi service as a transportation option in Calgary. Today, we’ve taken a major step to ensure that.

- Mayor Naheed Nenshi

Give Calgary a 20-Minute Makeover!

If you've ever joined in a group-cleaning of an area (maybe you've joined the annual pathway cleanup) you've likely experienced how fast it can be to make our public spaces litter-free.

So, let's give'r for a 20-Minute of Makeover of Calgary!

From Wednesday, June 6 to Saturday, June 9, 2012, all Calgarians are invited to join in a city-wide litter cleanup. Grab garbage bags and gloves and clean up a boulevard, back alley, or park – any public space that would benefit from a few minutes of TLC. Then just drop the collected litter in your regular garbage.

What difference can 20 minutes make? A BIG ONE!
If one in four Calgarians takes 20 minutes to pick up litter, we will invest 5,000,000 minutes, 83,333 hours, or 2,222 work days cleaning up our city. That's a major makeover! If each of us gives just 20 minutes picking up litter in public spaces, we will all benefit from a cleaner, safer city.


Who can participate in the 20-Minute Makeover?
All Calgarians - individuals and families, neighbours, schools, corporate and community groups - are all welcome to participate. Be part of building stronger communities!

Join the challenge by going to our sign up page and be counted!

Why not make a party of it? If you have a group of ten or more, garbage bags and a t-shirts will be available for your group. Everyone who signs up will be entered to win prizes. While registration is optional, we encourage you to sign up so we can map the cleanup.

We also encourage you to post your before and after photos on 3 Things for Calgary's Facebook page.

Group activities and events will be posted on the 20-Minute Makeover website. If you’d like to be part of a group event, watch the site for a location near you. If you’re planning a group event, we would be happy to post details of your event on the events page of the website.

Questions? Contact the 20-Minute Makeover Team, visit the website at www.calgary.ca/20minutemakeover, or call 3-1-1.

- posted by Daorcey (part of Mayor Nenshi's team) with help his 20-Minute Makeover friends

Mayor Nenshi Reads: But Not the Hippopotamus

As we get closer to the Calgary International Children's Festival (May 22-26), Mayor Nenshi is demonstrating a bit of simple fun you can have with reading. But Not the Hippopotamus by Sandra Boynton is a a perfect read for kids and parents.

This is not Mayor Nenshi's only contribution to the Children's Festival this year. He is also lending his image for a giant gumball portrait that will be created by artist Franz Spohn at the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA).

- Daorcey from Mayor Nenshi's team

The Ogden Road fire: Reason to be proud

Late last night, Calgary Fire Department crews successfully extinguished the long-smouldering fire at Calgary Metal Recycling. While clean-up efforts will continue for several days, Ogden Road has re-opened to traffic and neighbouring businesses were allowed to resume their operations on Thursday morning.

On behalf of all Calgarians, I want to thank Calgary Emergency Management Agency Director Bruce Burrell and the rest of his team for their professional handling of a very tricky situation. Firefighting, efforts to minimize smoke and dust, and ongoing monitoring of air quality required a high degree of coordination amongst a multi-disciplinary response team. Yet, during the ten days for which the Municipal Emergency Plan was activated, there were no injuries reported and disruption to businesses in the area, and to Calgarians in general, was kept to a bare minimum.

Fires, especially ones like these, can easily get out of control if not handled properly. There was real risk with this fire, but the fact that it was not a major problem is a testament to how well this emergency was managed.

I am proud of how all of the parties involved – City departments, provincial agencies, neighbouring businesses and the site owners and contractors – were able to cooperate to achieve this ideal result.

I am particularly grateful for the patience displayed by everyone affected by this fire, especially the neighbouring businesses and residents in the area. Your understanding of the complexity of this situation and acceptance that it might not be an easy resolution was so important to ensure that CEMA could focus on the task at hand. 

Thank you all.

- Mayor Naheed Nenshi

Calgary's Food Truck Summer - Pilot Update

Calgary’s tastiest pilot project is now into its final phase: the summer of food trucks!

Less than a year ago, Mayor Nenshi, his team, and some entrepreneurs mused about cutting red tape to bring street food to Calgary. In just a few short months, the Food Truck Pilot Program was becoming a great success. The combined efforts of Mayor Nenshi’s team, City of Calgary departments (Calgary Fire Department, Business Licensing, and Roads), entrepreneurs, business revitalization zones, Alberta Health Services, and the Calgary Parking Authority resulted in a streamlined process that connected a hungry public with a willing industry to make food truck magic.

Back in October, Calgary had 10 food trucks roaming the streets and selling all sorts of tasty treats. Right now, we have 19 trucks on the street and may have nearly 30 later this summer. One of the best ways to find the trucks is through twitter or an app (Street Food or YYC Food Truck).

The purpose of the pilot project is to understand how to make the food truck culture and industry successful in our city. Through the pilot, stakeholders have suggested solutions to best license the trucks, ensure health and safety, and help find a balance between traditional “bricks and mortar” restaurants and the trucks.

This summer will see the more food trucks on Calgary’s streets than ever before. It will be an opportunity to work out any kinks in this fledgling industry.

Calgary’s success with food trucks has caught the attention of people from around North America. Municipalities and media from around the continent have contacted The City to learn from our experience. Entrepreneurs are even coming to Calgary to join in the burgeoning industry which includes food truck manufacture, maintenance, and design.

And if you’re watching Eat Street this month (May 9 and May 23), you might just see a few of our trucks (and Mayor Nenshi) on an episode.

Speaking of video, here’s a short documentary about Calgary’s food trucks produced by Mount Royal University journalism degree students Melissa Renwick and Jennifer Friesen:

As we near the end of the pilot project in the fall of this year, City administration will work with stakeholders to recommend formal policy and licensing changes that will move food trucks from being a pilot project to a permanent part of the Calgary landscape.

If you have any questions about the food truck pilot or would like to start your own food truck, please visit this site on Calgary.ca.

- Daorcey from Mayor Nenshi’s team

Mayor Nenshi's Meetings: April 2012

Below is a list of external meetings hosted by the Mayor during the month of April 2012.

For an explanation of why this list exists and who's on it, please visit our post about highlighting accountability in the Mayor's Office.

April's meetings included:

• Alan Tennant, Calgary Real Estate Board - April 2, 2012
• Biu Fouke, Calgary Real Estate Board - April 2, 2012
• Junaid Malik, Calgary Real Estate Board - April 2, 2012
• Christina Stuwe, Calgary Real Estate Board - April 2, 2012
• Len Ishmael, Organization of Eastern Caribbean States - April 3, 2012
• Bernard John, Organization of Eastern Caribbean States - April 3, 2012
• Charmaine Williams, Organization of Eastern Caribbean States - April 3, 2012
• David Forbes, Earl Grey Golf Course - April 3, 2012
• John Stawkiewicz, Earl Grey Golf Course - April 3, 2012
• Dwayne Blaine, Earl Grey Golf Course - April 3, 2012
• Hal Vivisle, The Nature Conservancy - April 3, 2012
• John Plastiras, Walton Development - April 4, 2012
• Bill Doherty, Walton Development - April 4, 2012
• Eric Baczuk, MIT - April 19, 2012
• Xinodong Yang, ICBC (Canada) - April 22, 2012
• Mingxuan Zhu, ICBC (Canada) - April 22, 2012
• Chad Ennis, CUPE 37 - April 25, 2012
• Tony Miotti, CUPE 37 - April 25, 2012
• Don Monroe, CUPE 37 - April 25, 2012
• Bill Warren, CUPE 37 - April 25, 2012
• Priscilla Ntramoa, DBRS - April 27, 2012
• Eric Beauchemin, DBRS - April 27, 2012

- Daorcey from Mayor Nenshi's team