St. Albert Taxi has hit the brakes on its taxi business.
In the last three months, the local company's fleet of drivers has been reduced to just three, and the business has switched its focus to seniors and people with disabilities.
Lane Ferris, whose family started the St. Albert Taxi in 1991, was among a handful of drivers who lost their contracts with the business.
“It hurts,” he said. “But that’s the way it is.”
He said he’s disappointed the business is changing, stating he thought the business would run “forever and ever.”
30 years in the making
When his brother started the business almost 30 years ago, Ferris decided to join as a driver. In 1993, the company landed in his lap, and he said he knew he didn’t want to run it.His partner Bob Reiger bought out his shares, and Reiger remained the owner until 2005 when he sold it to another owner, Blair Logan.
“It was kind of my baby for a lot of years,” Reiger said Wednesday.
Reiger said Logan died of a heart attack in 2016. That year, Logan's son inherited the company and ultimately sold it to Jason and Marsha Toovey – the current owners.
Having a background as a paramedic, along with his wife who worked with children with special needs, Jason Toovey said they were searching for opportunities to help people with mobility issues. When they saw St. Albert Taxi for sale, they moved to the city seeing it as an opportunity.
At the time, St. Albert Taxi already had one wheelchair accessible bus with 24 seats. The Tooveys have since bought a second, along with a van, and plan to expand further.
“There’s a big need for the seniors who are shut in,” Toovey said, adding he felt St. Albert Taxi didn’t have enough accessible vehicles to meet that need in the city.
According to Toovey, one bus costs more than $100,000, while one accessible van costs up to $60,000. With the expense of the vehicles, along with minimum wage increases, he said he had to let staff go.
Job losses
Toovey couldn’t say how many drivers and dispatchers were terminated in the last two months, but Ferris estimates it’s around seven.Ferris now works for Saint City Taxi, the next-largest local taxi company in St. Albert. Ferris, who is semi-retired, said he feels the most disappointment for full-time drivers who lost their jobs.
When St. Albert Taxi first began in 1991, there were four drivers. When business was at its best, Reiger said the number grew to 36 drivers. By 2016, there were 12 or 13 cars on the road.
Ferris said a few drivers have joined him at Saint City Taxi, and it’s been a positive experience.
Now when people call St. Albert Taxi at 780-495-5050, they’ll be directed to a voicemail message. Toovey said he’s responding to each caller and directing them to Saint City Taxi.
Correction
A previous version of this article contained an incorrect number of wheelchair-accessible vehicles owned by St. Albert Taxi.
