In Vancouver, a cab driver refused a ride to a blind man with a guide dog by saying, first, that his was a pet-free cab, and later, that his religion did not allow him to be in a cab with an unclean dog.
The cab company paid off the blind man with $2,500 for his inconvenience and released a policy on cabs and guide dogs. It includes:
"North Shore Taxi was ordered to immediately establish a policy forbidding any driver to refuse a fare from a blind person accompanied by a certified guide dog. The only exceptions are for drivers allergic to dogs and those who satisfy the company that they have an honest religious belief that precludes them from transporting certified guide dogs. However, such drivers must call dispatch for the next available cab, give their name to the blind person and remain with them until the next cab arrives. Anyone who breaches the policy will be suspended for two shifts for a first offence and be subject to termination for a second offence."The interesting thing is that no where in the policy is there a statement to the effect of, if you can't do your job of taxiing people from point A to B because of some religious belief, then maybe you should seek a new line of work.
But let's give Mr. Gilmour the final word. He stated that he and his guide dog rarely encounter problems with other types of public transportation. He's hoping the requirement that cabbies have to wait until another taxi is dispatched will make life easier for people with disabilities.
"My dog is well behaved and clean so what is the barrier here?" he said. "I just hope this arbitrary action will no longer prevail."
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