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By HEATHER MCLAUGHLIN
mclaughlin.heather@dailygleaner.com

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For close to five years, the city has been trying to give away $25,000 to a local taxi company willing to modify a van to transport people with disabilities.

There were no takers.

Finally, Doug Bridgman, chairman of Fredericton's accessible taxi committee, got tired of waiting.

He staked some of his own cash and found a business partner in Mark Webster, a financial adviser with ScotiaMcLeod in Sussex, to create the city's first 24-7 taxi service for the disabled.

Together they have formed the B.A.T. mobile - Brunswick Accessible Taxi Inc. - and their sole asset will be a new, $50,000 retrofitted van that will accept calls for service the same as any taxi cab in the city.

If all goes well, Bridgman said the taxi can be in service by Labour Day.

The taxi service will operate under the corporate umbrella of George's SkyCab and George's will aid Brunswick Accessible Taxi by discounting its dispatching services and providing in-house maintenance and support.

"This is a door-to-door service," Bridgman said.

"The priority is to use it for people with impairments."

While the average taxi fare in Fredericton is about $8, the accessible taxi service will charge $12 to cover insurance costs and the extra time required to assist passengers.

City councillors had to give their approval to the proposal Tuesday night because it's the city that's staking the $25,000 to help underwrite the costs of the initial retrofit.

The stainless steel chassis of the van has to be cut and modified for a power ramp to life wheelchairs aboard and tie-downs to ensure a secure ride.

Councillors unanimously voted their support for the venture.

Fredericton has a Dial-a-Bus service for the disabled, a publicly funded bus that transports passengers with mobility problems, but the service only operates during daytime hours five days a week. It gives its priority to individuals with medical appointments and customers must be pre-approved from a list of registered users.

Anyone with a physical disability who wants to go out to eat, go to a movie, get to the airport or to the mall or otherwise use a taxi the same way as any other Fredericton resident, doesn't have access to that kind of service.

Since the vehicle is classified as a taxi, it can only be kept in service for a limited time period.

"No taxicab owner's licence shall be issued for any motor vehicle which has a model year more than five years preceding the calendar year in which the applicant attempts to register the vehicle," states the city's taxi bylaw.

City councillors said Tuesday that may require reconsideration given the high costs of modifying the vehicle to put it into service. The retrofit is unique to each van and the mobility devices can't be transferred to another vehicle.

Coun. Stephen Chase was set to amend the motion in support of the taxi service to allow it to exceed the five-year mark.

But Doug Overbo of the city's building inspection and bylaw enforcement division cautioned that changing the rules for the accessible taxi service and not for other taxi businesses could be problematic and raise potential legal problems down the road.

Coun. Scott McConaghy said since the service is just starting up, there's plenty of time to consider changing the criteria.

Bridgman would like to see the age criterion reviewed given that the new taxi service has to generate $10,000 per year just to recoup on the cost of the vehicle.

"I'm hoping this is really going to take off," said Coun. Marilyn Kerton. "The demand is there."