December 1, 2015 (Toronto)—December 1st is “Snow Tire Day” for Toronto’s taxi industry.
From December 1st to March 15th, licensed taxis in Toronto are required by City by-law to have snow tires on their cabs.
“It costs extra money and time to switch over twice per year, but the by-law was written with the safety of Toronto residents in mind. It only makes sense,” says Sam Moini, spokesperson for the Toronto Taxi Alliance. Moini manages a taxi fleet and has been busy all week changing the cabs over to snow tires.
A recent study reported on Wheels.ca noted that stops on cold bare pavement from 50 km/h produced results of 18 metres for winter tires and 27.1 metres for all-seasons. That’s 33.6-per-cent shorter for winter tires, which in Toronto could be the difference between a stop and a collision.
The requirement for snow tires applies only to licensed taxis. “Unregulated operators like UberX are not subject to this requirement,” Moini notes.
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