A retired Ottawa professor forced to use a walker after a recent surgery says he was told to stand in the middle of the street and wave his arms to hail a cab when he called an accessible taxi to Billings Bridge shopping centre.

Denis Caro said he initially waited 20 minutes at the mall on July 28 before calling Coventry Connections dispatch for a second time, but didn't immediately realize he was talking to a dispatcher half a world away in the Philippines.

"It was just a very strange interaction. I said, 'Well, how much longer is it going to be?' And she said, 'What you need to do is go out in the street and wave your arms if you see a taxi,'" he said. "My jaw dropped. ... It's dangerous, so you have to be careful. And if it's at night or in the winter, even more so."

Caro said he then asked to speak to a supervisor who told him he was "calling from a highly restricted area," he said, adding he ordered the taxi to "Door 5," the mall's main entrance.

"I was just shocked," he said. "It was a very disturbing conversation, to say the least."

Dispatcher calls complaints 'hearsay'

The head of the Ottawa taxi union said there have been dozens of complaints from customers and drivers since the end of June. That's when Coventry Connections announced that most of its over-the-phone dispatch operations would move to a call centre in the Philippines.

The dispatcher, which receives calls for Blueline, Westway and Capital taxis, laid off 60 workers at its Ottawa call centre.

Hanif Patni, head of Coventry Connections, refused to respond to complaints about the dispatcher's call centre in the Philippines. (CBC)

Taxi drivers told CBC News that the dispatchers working in the Philippines don't know the most obvious Ottawa landmarks, including the Rideau Centre.

Hanif Patni, the head of Coventry Connections, told CBC News he was "not going to address" the complaints over the call centre, calling them "hearsay." He refused to answer any questions.

Patni previously blamed the cost-saving call centre move to the Philippines on the loss of revenue caused by the emergence of the ride-hailing service Uber.

Pierre Nahkle, head of the Ottawa taxi union, said he has filed grievances over the move.

Caro said the move is a disservice not only to customers, but to taxi drivers who might miss out on fares.

"A lot of people say, 'Well, we'll just use Uber. That's the way around it.' I say, better to confront the problem," he said. "The way I view it, when you've got a company working for profit, you've still got a corporate responsibility and a social responsibility to the community that you live in."

'I need an accessible taxi'

​After challenges with Westway, Caro said he called Blueline and a taxi came almost immediately. With limited mobility, he said he also has limited transportation options.

"In a pinch, I have to use taxis and I need an accessible taxi. And I'm in good company. There's a lot of people in my situation," he said.

The experience was difficult as a local, but Caro said it could be even tougher for tourists visiting the capital this summer.

"A lot of tourists won't really know where they are, and they'll have an expectation that when they call for a taxi, they will be responsive," he said.

Caro said he also contacted the city about his concerns but has not received a response.

The City of Ottawa does not regulate the location of taxi dispatch offices, said Scott Campbell of the bylaw department. He said the city "has no record of receiving any complaints related to the location of the taxicab dispatch call centre."