Minutes

Vehicle-for-Hire Advisory Committee

The Corporation of the City of Brampton

Tuesday, September 21, 2021

1:00 P.m. - 3:00 P.m.

Council Chambers - 4th Floor, City Hall - Webex Electronic Meeting

Members Present:

• Mandeep Dhaliwal (Co-Chair)
• Joan John (Co-Chair)
• Narinder Pandher, Taxi Plate Owner
• Mahesh Malhi, Taxi Plate Owner
• Zafar Tariq, Taxi Plate Owner
• Jaswant Uppal, Taxi Plate Owner
• Makhan Dhother, Taxi Broker
• Kunal Shrotriya, Citizen Representative
• Franco Spadafora, Accessibility Advisory Committee Representative
• Regional Councillor G. Dhillon - Wards 9 and 10
• Regional Councillor P. Fortini - Wards 7 and 8

Members Absent:

• Sudhir Kalia, Taxi Driver
• Milton Bhangoo, Taxi Broker
• Hari Rawul, Citizen Representative

Staff Present:

• James Bisson, Manager, Licensing Enforcement, Legislative Services
• Doug Rieger, Director, Transit Development, Brampton Transit
• Kevin Minaker, Manager, Traffic Operations and Parking, Public Works and Engineering
• Charlotte Gravlev, Deputy City Clerk, Legislative Services
• Sonya Pacheco, Legislative Coordinator

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1.

Call to Order

The meeting was called to order at 1:07 p.m. and adjourned at 2:40 p.m.

2.

Approval of Agenda

The following motion was considered.

• VAC001-2021

  That the agenda for the Vehicle-For-Hire Advisory Committee Meeting of September 21, 2021 be approved, as amended to add the following item:

  7.3  Discussion Item at the request of Regional Councillor Fortini, re: Inactive Taxi Plates 

  Carried

3.

Declarations of Interest under the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act

Nil

4.

Previous Minutes

Nil

5.

Delegations/Presentations

5.1

Presentation by Charlotte Gravlev, Deputy City Clerk, Legislative Services, re: Vehicle-For-Hire Advisory Committee Orientation

Charlotte Gravlev, Deputy City Clerk, Legislative Services, provided an orientation presentation to Committee, which included information regarding committee and meeting processes, and the role of committee members. 

The following motion was considered.

• VAC002-2021

  That the presentation by Charlotte Gravlev, Deputy City Clerk, Legislative Services, to the Vehicle-For-Hire Advisory Committee Meeting of September 21, 2021, re: Vehicle-For-Hire Advisory Committee Orientation, be received.

  Carried

6.

Reports

Nil

7.

Other/New Business

7.1

Election of Chair and Vice-Chair or Co-Chairs

Charlotte Gravlev, Deputy City Clerk, called for nominations for the position of Chair and Vice Chair, or Co-Chairs, for the Vehicle-for-Hire Advisory Committee.

Zafar Tariq and Mahesh Mali, Committee Members, nominated Regional Councillor Fortini for the position of Chair.

Regional Councillor Fortini nominated Regional Councillor Dhillon for the position of Chair.

After further consideration, Regional Councillor Fortini advised Committee that it is common practice for citizen advisory committees to appoint citizen members to the positions of Chair and Vice-Chair, or Co-Chairs. He added that Councillors are appointed to advisory committees as Council liaison members.  

Committee discussion took place with respect to:

• the need to ensure concerns raised by committee members are heard
• the role of Council liaison members on advisory committees, including representation at Council
• appointing Council liaison members as Chair and Vice Chair 
• suggestion that citizen members be considered for appointment as Co-Chairs

Mandeep Dhaliwal and Joan John, Committee Members, expressed an interest in the position of Co-Chair.

Regional Councillor Fortini nominated Mandeep Dhaliwal and Joan John for the position of Co-Chairs.  Both members accepted the nomination.

Zafar Tariq, Committee Member, nominated Regional Councillor Dhillon as Chair and Regional Councillor Fortini as Vice Chair. The Councillors did not accept the nomination, given the interest from other committee members to assume these roles.  

Ms. Gravlev called for any further nominations. As no further nominations were received, she declared the nominations closed. 

The following motion was considered and carried.

That Mandeep Dhaliwal and Joan John, Committee Members, be appointed to the position of Co-Chairs of the Vehicle-for-Hire Advisory Committee, for the term ending November 14, 2022.

In response to questions and concerns from Committee members regarding the accuracy of the above-noted vote, the vote was re-taken with a recorded vote, as follows:

• VAC003-2021

  That Mandeep Dhaliwal and Joan John, Committee Members, be appointed to the position of Co-Chairs of the Vehicle-for-Hire Advisory Committee, for the term ending November 14, 2022.

  Yea (5): Narinder Pandher, Joan John, Mandeep Dhaliwal, Kunal Shrotriya, Franco Spadafora

  Nay (4): Mahesh Malhi, Zafar Tariq, Jaswant Uppal, Makhan Dhother

  Absent (3): Sudhir Kalia, Milton Bhangoo, Hari Rawul

  Carried (5 to 4)

   

  Joan John assumed the role of Chair for the remainder of the meeting.

  
  

7.2

Discussion Item re: Accessible Taxicab Pick-up and Drop-off Area on Central Park Drive

Doug Rieger, Director, Transit Development, Brampton Transit, provided information to Committee regarding the accessible taxicab pick-up and drop-off area on Central Park Drive. Mr. Rieger advised that transit services are now fully accessible and there is a growing need to improve sidewalk access and connection to the transit terminal. He advised that, based on staff's observations, this taxi stand is not well-used and provided information on a proposal to change this area to optimize use for all users and improve sidewalk access. Mr. Rieger advised that pick-ups and drop-offs would continue to be permitted in this area, and sought Committee's feedback on the proposal.

Committee discussion on this matter included the following:

• Safety and traffic on Peel Centre Drive
  • It was noted that staff have been working with traffic services to ensure this area is safe 
• Clarification from staff that this area would be designated as a pick-up and drop-off zone to be used by all vehicles-for-hire
• Indication from staff that timelines for the proposed changes have not been confirmed at this time
• Indication from staff that the taxi stand on Team Canada Drive is well used
• The need for designated parking spots for taxis at the Bramalea City Centre, and a suggestion for a designated drop-off and pick-up zone for TransHelp

The following motion was considered.

• VAC004-2021

  That the discussion item re: Accessible Taxicab Pick-up and Drop-off Area on Central Park Drive, to the Vehicle-for-Hire Advisory Committee meeting of September 21, 2021, be received.

  Carried

7.3

Discussion Item at the request of Regional Councillor Fortini, re: Inactive Taxi Plates

James Bisson, Manager, Licensing Enforcement, Legislative Services, provided information to Committee regarding the status of inactive taxi plates. He advised that 126 taxi plates are currently not in use and 79 of those plates are under a conditional licence renewal (no vehicle).

Committee discussion took place with respect to the following:

• Previous amendments to the Mobile Licensing By-law to assist the taxi industry, including licence extensions due to COVID-19
• Confirmation from staff that the current taxi plate issuance model has been suspended until such time that there are no inactive plates

The following motion was considered.

• VAC005-2021

  That the discussion item at the request of Regional Councillor Fortini, re: Inactive Taxi Plates, to the Vehicle-for-Hire Advisory Committee meeting of September 21, 2021, be received.

  Carried

8.

Correspondence

Nil

9.

Information Items

Nil

10.

Question Period

1. In response to a question from Franco Spadafora, Committee Member, James Bisson, Manager, Licensing Enforcement, Legislative Services, provided information on the processes relating to the issuance of taxi plates and the return of inactive plates to the City.

11.

Public Question Period

Nil

12.

Adjournment

The following motion was considered.

• VAC006-2021

  That the Vehicle-For-Hire Advisory Committee do now adjourn to meet again at the call of the Chair.

  Carried