The next time you’re drunk and headed home, you may want to consider taking the bus instead of a taxi.
That’s because it looks increasingly likely that Canadians — at least in some cities — will soon have to pay up if they puke in a cab.
Toronto is the latest municipality to look at charging “vomit fees” to passengers who can’t hold it down in a cab.
A report to city council recommends that cabbies be allowed to charge a $25 cleaning fee to passengers, the Toronto Star reports. City council will vote on the proposal in February.
That $25 fee is considerably lower than the $100 fee that Calgary’s taxi advisory committee has green-lit, and is expected to come into force this year.
But some cabbies say even $100 might not be enough to cover their losses from a nauseated passenger.
“If I’m starting my night at 9 p.m. and on my first trip somebody throws up — there’s my shift gone,” cabbie Paul Sekhon told the Calgary Herald.
Calgary’s fee is based on similar fees in Ottawa, St. Louis and Chicago, CBC reports.
In Calgary’s case, the city noticed that many cabbies were packing up and heading for home after the evening rush hour, and not sticking around for the late-night crowds, when demand for cabbies is at its highest. Some of that can be attributed to cabbies not wanting to deal with drunk passengers.
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