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Idea of licensing bicycle couriers gets
mixed reaction
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By OLIVER MOORE
Globe and Mail, September 2, 2006
Bicycle couriers would not be allowed to work in Toronto without a
licence, similar to the one required by drivers, according to a
fledgling proposal floating around city hall.
It's the brainchild of midtown Councillor Cesar Palacio, who knows
licensing is a controversial concept. He said yesterday that he raised
the still-evolving idea in hopes of sparking discussion between the
city, couriers, police and other stakeholders.
It promises to be a loud conversation.
The police have historically spoken against bicycle licensing as
ineffective and unnecessarily costly, and the reaction yesterday in the
courier community was mixed and often colourful.
John MacNeil, a 13-year veteran who works for Impact Courier Services,
was blunt.
He described the politicians who come up with ideas like this as people
"sitting in armchairs" who know nothing about the industry and, he
said, they should "take their [tax] money at the end of the year and be
happy."
"Even if they do implement it, good luck trying to enforce it . . .
there's no way it's going to happen," said Mr. MacNeil as he took a
break outside the Exchange Tower.
"We need rules and regulations, but we don't need to be drowned in
them, we don't need to be strangled with them, we don't need to be
smothered by them."
Other industry insiders were not as vehement. Frank D'Angelo, owner of
The Messengers International, said he likes the idea if it helps give
couriers legitimacy in the eyes of a public that often maligns them.
"They just really like cycling, they're free-spirited, I can't praise
them enough," he said.
Mr. D'Angelo said he wouldn't be able to offer 15-minute service in the
downtown core using anything other than bicycle couriers.
"Sometimes they're portrayed as drug-crazed lunatics . . . the ones
that fall into that negative image, they're a small minority, but
they're the ones you notice and remember," he argued.
Safety skills are key to Mr. Palacio's proposal. Although most of the
details remain to be fleshed out, he envisions rules-of-the-road
testing before a courier is issued a licence. Riding infractions could
result in demerit points, with the potential that repeat offenders
could lose their right to ride.
But those in the industry said the councillor is aiming at the wrong
target.
Mr. D'Angelo insisted that good couriers are sufficiently skilled and
responsible to meet their deadlines without riding dangerously. Mr.
MacNeil agreed, saying the bad reputation attached to couriers can be
traced to amateurs trying to emulate the pros.
"It's because of other cyclists who don't know what they're doing
running all over town," he said. "They try to copy couriers but they're
not as good as us."
Courier licensing is on the agenda for the planning and transportation
committee meeting Tuesday morning, the beginning of what promises to be
a long process.
The city has begun exploring the idea, aware that it doesn't have the
power to make such changes. Feasibility studies will begin after the
City of Toronto Act takes effect Jan. 1.
"There has to be strong consultations with the industry before anything
is approved," Mr. Palacio said.
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