[37] Bill 2 As Amended by Standing Committee (PDF)
Bill 2 2003
An Act to amend the
Highway Traffic Act
to restrict the conveyance of
passengers for compensation
Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, enacts as follows:
1. (1) Subsection 7 (10) of the Highway Traffic Act, as re-enacted by the Statutes of Ontario, 1992, chapter 20, section 2 and amended by 1993, chapter 31, section 2, is amended by adding "or a fine imposed on conviction of an offence under section 40.1" after "parking infraction".
(2) Subsection 7 (11) of the Act, as re-enacted by the Statutes of Ontario, 1992, chapter 20, section 2 and amended by 1993, chapter 31, section 2, is amended by adding "or a fine imposed on conviction of an offence under section 40.1" after "parking infraction".
2. The Act is amended by adding the following section:
Conveyance or pick-up of passengers prohibited
40.1 (1) Unless all of the conditions set out in a regulation made under clause (2) (a) are met, no driver of a motor vehicle shall, and no owner or lessee of a motor vehicle shall knowingly permit a driver to,
(a) convey passengers anywhere in Ontario in the motor vehicle for compensation; or
(b) pick up passengers anywhere in Ontario for the purpose of conveying them somewhere in the motor vehicle for compensation.
Minister's regulations
(2) The Minister may make regulations,
(a) specifying conditions for the purpose of subsection (1);
(b) exempting any motor vehicle or class of motor vehicle from the requirements of this section;
(c) exempting any person or class of persons from the requirements of this section.
Class
(2.1) A class mentioned in clause (2) (b) or (c) may be defined with respect to any attribute, characteristic or time or place limitation or combination of those items and may be defined to consist of or to include or exclude any specified member, whether or not with the same attributes or characteristics or time or place limitations.
Exception
(3) This section does not apply to a public vehicle, as defined in the Public Vehicles Act, to which that Act applies.
Right of occupier of premises
(4) Nothing in this section prevents an occupier of premises from prohibiting a driver of a motor vehicle who does not have a permit, licence or other authorization from the occupier of the premises from picking up passengers on the premises for the purpose of conveying them somewhere in the motor vehicle for compensation.
Same, no right of driver
(5) Even if the conditions set out in a regulation made under clause (2) (a) are met, nothing in this section authorizes a driver of a motor vehicle described in subsection (4) who has not obtained the permit, licence or other authorization required by the occupier of the premises to pick up passengers on the premises for the purpose of conveying them somewhere in the motor vehicle for compensation.
Offence and penalty
(6) Every person who contravenes this section is guilty of an offence and, on conviction, is liable,
(a) on a first conviction, to a fine of not less than $305 and not more than $5,000; and
(b) on each subsequent conviction, to a fine of not less than $500 and not more than $5,000.
Subsequent conviction within 10-year period
(7) A conviction of an offence under this section more than 10 years after a previous conviction of an offence under this section is not a subsequent conviction for the purpose of clause (6) (b).
Same
(8) In determining whether a conviction is a subsequent conviction for the purpose of clause (6) (b), the only question to be considered is the sequence of convictions and no consideration shall be given to the sequence of commission of offences or whether any offence occurred before or after any conviction.
Commencement
3. This Act comes into force on the day that is 180 days from the day on which it receives Royal Assent.
Short title
4. The short title of this Act is the Highway Traffic Amendment Act (No Conveying of Passengers for Compensation), 2003.
This reprint of the Bill is marked to indicate the changes that were made in Committee.
Marginal side bars in the outer
margin indicate that either a provision has been replaced, a new provision
has been added or that there has been a change within a provision in either
or both the English and French version of the bill. The changes are indicated
by underlines for new text and a strikethrough
for deleted text.
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EXPLANATORY NOTE
The Bill makes it a provincial offence under the Highway Traffic Act to convey passengers anywhere in Ontario in a motor vehicle for compensation, or to pick up passengers anywhere in Ontario for the purpose of conveying them somewhere in a motor vehicle for compensation, unless all the conditions set out in a regulation made by the Minister are met. It is also a provincial offence for the owner or lessee of a motor vehicle to knowingly permit a driver to commit the offence. The new offence does not apply to a public vehicle to which the Public Vehicles Act applies or to a motor vehicle or person or class of them specified in a regulation made by the Minister.
If a person who is convicted of the new offence fails to pay the fine imposed on conviction, section 46 of the Highway Traffic Act provides that a direction may be made under section 69 of the Provincial Offences Act suspending the driver's licence of the person and directing that no driver's licence be issued to the person until the fine is paid.
In addition, if a person who is convicted of the new offence fails to pay the fine imposed on conviction, a direction may be made under section 69 of the Provincial Offences Act refusing validation of the person's vehicle permit or issuance of a vehicle permit to the person until the fine is paid. The refusal to validate applies only to the permit for the vehicle involved in the commission of the offence, by virtue of subsection 7 (12) of the Highway Traffic Act and subsection 69 (4) of the Provincial Offences Act.