Ace Transportation Group has come forward to resist any implication the company has broken the contract they signed with the Town of Collingwood in March 2023 to provide accessible taxi service to residents for two years.
Ace argues they're still providing the service and "exceeding" the obligations set out in the contract with the town, even with reduced hours as of Oct. 1.
The reduced hours were part of a discussion at council earlier this month, with councillors expressing frustration that the service, which is subsidized by the town to the tune of $84,000 a year.
The service is now only available from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays and must be pre-booked. Prior to Oct. 1, the accessible taxi service ran until 1 a.m., requiring rides after 9 p.m. to be booked in advance.
Though Ace Transportation Group declined to comment on an Oct. 11 story posted to CollingwoodToday about the reduced hours, the company sent a letter on Oct. 18 with follow-up comments.
The letter, sent by Donna Stott, office manager for Ace Transportation Group, re-stated that the reason the company didn't comment before was because of a confidentiality agreement with the town.
“However, we feel it is important to set the record straight based on the statements made in your article,” wrote Stott.
The letter from Ace Transportation quoted the following clause from the contract between Ace and the town:
“Subject to the provisions of this agreement, the operator will provide accessible on-demand taxi services in the Town of Collingwood for the same hours and days of service to the extent that standard taxicab services are available,” reads the letter.
Back in March 2023, town council voted in favour of paying Ace Cabs $84,000 a year, for two years, as a subsidy for door-to-door fare-based accessible taxi service in town.
The town funds were paid to cover extra costs associated with accessible taxi service, but riders still need to pay the regular fare.
Ace Cabs ended their regular in-town service as of Sept. 30, but is continuing to offer out-of-town fares if pre-booked two days in advance.
When Ace announced the closure, there was no mention of reduced hours for the accessibile service, only that the service would continue as per Ace's contract with the town.
“Ace Cabs, by offering accessibility services both in town and out of town from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Monday to Friday is actually exceeding our obligations in accordance with the Town of Collingwood contract,” wrote Stott.
Sandy Falcon, the community transportation coordinator for the Town of Collingwood, confirmed the clause cited in the letter from Ace is from the contract between Ace and the town.
"However, the intent of the agreement and subsidy the town gives Ace to provide this service is to ensure those who need accessible taxi services are provided with the same level of service as any resident," stated Falcon in an emailed statement from the town's communications manager.
"It is unfortunate the users are impacted as they rely heavily on the taxi service for all hours," stated Falcon, adding a reminder about the town's TransitPLUS service, a door-to-door, book-in-advance transit option for people unable to access conventional transit due to medical, physical, or cognitive disabilities.
When signing on to the contract with Ace Cabs in March 2023, town council intended the solution to be an interim one while they hoped to improve the town’s own TransitPLUS operations by March 31, 2025 when the contract with Ace is set to expire.
During council's committee of the whole meeting on Oct. 7, Coun. Chris Potts raised the issue of the contract.
“It’s bothersome that we extended a contract to a certain date. I think we should be pushing for the same service until that date,” said Potts. “For the users out there, it’s not fair to them and an agreement is an agreement. I don’t think it’s acceptable.”
Ace Transportation Group’s accessible taxi service now operates Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Also, rides are to be pre-booked two days in advance.
The town's public buses are wheelchair accessible, and the door-to-door accessible transit system, TransitPLUS, operates seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. and must be pre-booked. Same-day requests are not guaranteed.
