QUEBEC—The Quebec government will give the province’s taxi drivers $500 million in compensation as it moves to overhaul the province’s passenger transport industry. These include a standard class 5 licence (as opposed to the current 4C required for taxi drivers), a training course and a criminal-background check. He said that by lowering the financial burden on taxi drivers, the industry will be able to stabilize and find its place in the market. That assertion was challenged by the taxi industry representatives, who accused the government of betraying them and acting as lobbyists for Uber. “It’s a declaration of war” and a “dark day for the taxi industry,” industry spokesman Abdallah Homsy said at a news conference.

Source: thestar March 20, 2019 22:41 UTC