The city says Uber Canada is now operating as a legal taxi brokerage in Toronto despite continuing to illegally connect riders to unlicensed drivers.

On Friday, Uber announced it had received its taxi brokerage licence after applying in May amid ongoing controversy about bringing the company under the same city rules as traditional taxi companies.

Members of the taxi industry criticized that move, saying little has changed and Uber still isn’t following the rules. Council will consider next month whether to take the company to court again.

Uber, which links riders with available cabs through its UberTaxi service on a mobile app, also offers cheaper rides through unlicensed drivers using the UberX service on the same app.

“This is another step towards our participation in a comprehensive regulatory solution that includes ride-sharing,” Uber Canada spokesperson Susie Heath said in a statement. “We will continue to work with the City of Toronto towards new regulations for ride-sharing, which are expected in the coming months.”

Tracey Cook, the head of the city’s municipal licensing and standards division, drew a distinction between the two services, saying she considers UberTaxi now properly operating as a legal taxi brokerage.

“For the purposes of dispatching or connecting licensed City of Toronto taxi cabs under UberTaxi, that is lawfully permitted under the taxi cab brokerage licence,” Cook said, while confirming that UberX and its drivers are still operating illegally.

According to the city’s rules, taxi brokerages are prohibited from connecting riders to unlicensed cabs. Any dispatch company breaking those rules could be fined $50,000, with an additional $25,000 levied against each company director.

But Cook said Uber will only be breaking those rules if it dispatches an unlicensed car to someone who requested a licensed taxi through UberTaxi. Operating UberX alongside UberTaxi doesn’t break those rules.

Separately, she said the city continues to enforce the current bylaws against Uber and UberX drivers, with 120 bylaw charges currently before the courts and a further 180 to 210 charges being processed.

Licensing staff are still working on new regulations to bring UberX under city legislation, a proposal expected to be put forward in April.

The brokerage licence, which costs $400 to obtain and less to renew each year, puts Uber in the same league as major cab companies such as Beck — one of several groups vocally opposing the service they say is taking away drivers’ livelihoods.

On Friday, Beck spokesperson Kristine Hubbard said she’s glad for the acknowledgement that Uber is a taxi dispatcher just like her company, even as Uber continues to label itself a “ride-sharing” service.

But Hubbard said she’s stunned by the city’s position.

“It is irresponsible at best that we would see our regulatory body issue a licence to a company that has constantly broken the rules, constantly undermined authority and has no respect for our legal system here,” Hubbard said.

The granting of Uber’s brokerage licence follows months of controversy after the city took the company to court over claims it was operating illegally in the city — a fight that is playing out across North America.

After a Superior Court judge ruled last year that Uber was operating outside the legal framework and not breaking city rules, council voted to update the bylaws to bring those Uber services using licensed taxis and limos into the city’s jurisdiction.

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On Friday afternoon, the licensing and standards committee backed a motion by Councillor Jim Karygiannis to seek a court injunction against Uber and UberX drivers. Only Councillor Josh Matlow voted against that move. It will go to council when they meet starting Feb. 3.

Cook said seeking an injunction is always difficult but said ultimately it’s up to council to direct that decision.

Uber’s Heath said: “It’s unfortunate that despite such positive movement both in the City of Toronto and in communities across Canada and the vocal support of thousands of Toronto’s riders and drivers, Councillors (Giorgio) Mammoliti and Karygiannis are still actively working to stall progress with today’s motion.”

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