Seven major taxi companies — including Calgary’s Associated Cab and Checker Yellow Cabs — have started a national advertising campaign that takes on their new competitor Uber and its plans to operate in Canadian cities.

The campaign uses a website and newspaper ads to target the Calgary, Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto, Edmonton, and Vancouver markets. Each of those cities has been chosen for expansion by Uber, an American company that offers “ride-sharing” for a fee.

The print ads, in the form of an open letter to the public, don’t mention Uber by name. Instead they tell readers that by using a regulated taxi system they’re getting trained drivers, insurance coverage and a meter showing the fare.

But the group’s website names and attacks Uber specifically, claiming its drivers are poorly paid and under-insured.

Roger Richard, president of Calgary’s Associated Cab, said the purpose of the campaign is to educate the public about the way the taxi industry is structured and what the difference is between a regulated service and a non-regulated service.

“The public needs to be aware of these issues,” Richard said. “The reason this industry is regulated, number one, is safety.”

Richard added he’s not bothered by competition, but said any new company that wants to offer rides in Calgary should have to play by the same rules that govern the regulated taxi industry.

Uber has rolled out service in Toronto, Ottawa, and more recently Montreal.

Ottawa has been using undercover inspectors to catch Uber drivers, and in Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre has declared the system illegal.

The Ottawa drivers face fines of $650 each after undercover city employees booked rides through Uber’s app, Susan Jones, the City of Ottawa’s general manager of emergency and protective services, said in a recent interview. “Enforcement is underway as we speak and will continue to be.”

Uber says it wants to come to Calgary, but is stymied by a local regulation requiring a minimum $78.34 charge for any sedan or limousine trip. City Hall has so far been unwilling to change the regulation, meaning Uber — which uses black sedans for its service — can’t compete with the city’s more affordable taxis.

In August, City of Calgary officials warned of safety risks associated with the use of technologies like Uber. In a report to the city’s Taxi and Limousine Advisory Committee, they warned that companies like Uber operate under an unregulated business model that isn’t held to the same standards as the city’s existing taxi system.

The report also said Uber used improperly licensed and registered drivers and cars when it offered a free weekend trial of its services in Calgary last year.

Uber has its own website and is trying to get 10,000 signatures online asking Calgary to allow the service. More than 6,100 people had signed the petition as of Monday afternoon.

In an emailed statement Monday, Uber said its insurance and background checks are superior to taxi companies’ offering, and called the national anti-Uber campaign a “desperate” public relations strategy.

“For decades, the Canadian taxi industry cared nothing about working to serve residents and visitors,” the company said. “Rather than make an effort to listen and meet consumer expectations of quality, safety and reliability, they’re undertaking a smear campaign to protect their cartel.”

Uber currently operates in 45 countries and 150 cities.

The service operates by smartphone. A customer opens an account and records a credit-card number which is charged whenever the customer gets a ride.

Drivers are private vehicle operators using their own cars, and aren’t licensed as cabbies.