City administration has put forward a schedule of fines directed at taxi cabs that do not adhere to the rules around mandated audio recordings in their vehicles.

The administrative report prepared for council’s meeting on Monday notes the audio recordings were made mandatory in December as part of amendments to the Vehicle for Hire bylaw.

The proposed amendments to the bylaw include a provision to make it an offence for any person to temporarily shut off, delete or tamper with recordings.

The administrative report presented by Kyle Morrison, manager of bylaw services, says taxi companies must retain the audio recordings for seven days.

“In a meeting with the taxi companies, it was noted that increasing the retention period will have an impact on the industry as current systems do not possess capabilities for lengthy retention time,” says the report.

“This change will require companies to purchase a new camera system with an anticipated cost of approximately $600 to $1,000 per camera.”

Adopting the proposed changes with the provision of first and second offence charges would increase enforcement options and possibly reduce court time if a higher fine amount is deemed appropriate, says the report.

It says the proposed changes will provide better enforcement capabilities and are intended to serve as stronger deterrents.

Currently, for instance, the fine for failing to record images or audio, or deleting images or audio, is $2,500.

Under the new proposed fine schedule, the fine would remain at $2,500 for the first offence but rise to $5,000 for a second offence.

Administration is recommending that council direct a bylaw to amend the Vehicle for Hire bylaw be brought forward for consideration under the bylaw process.

The report says if council does not adopt the schedule of fines, that the bylaw be amended to “expressly prohibit audio recordings in all taxis.”

Drivers would be prohibited from accessing the camera footage and audio, under the bylaw.

The report notes access to the recordings would be limited to company owners strictly for the purpose of resolving customer complaints, and to the city for legal and insurance purposes.

Providing images or audio to anyone other than a designated officer would carry a fine of $2,500, as it is now. The fine for a second offence under the amendments would be $5,000, says the report.

The proposed list of infractions and the associated fines are as follow:

• New vehicle for hire added to the fleet without a security camera – currently set at $100 – would increase to $500;

• Security camera not approved – fine would rise from $100 to $500;

• Security camera not properly mounted to taxi – fine would climb from $100 to $500;

• Security camera not recording images or audio at all times the fare is in the vehicle – fine would remain at $2,500 for first offence but be hiked to $5,000 for second offence;

• Security camera not hardwired into taxi – fine would remain at $2,500 for first offence but be boosted to $5,000 for second offence;

• Failure to retain or produce security camera images of audio – fine would remain at $2,500 for first offence but increase to $5,000 for second offence;

• Failing to capture images or audio with security camera – fine would remain at $2,500 for first offence but increase to $5,000 for second offence;

• Failure to record images or audio or remove or delete images and audio – fine would remain at $2,500 for first offence but rise to $5,000 for second offence; and

• Provide images or audio from security camera to anyone other than a designated officer – fine would remain at $2,500 for first offence but climb to $5,000 for second offence.