Sage Pub owner and manager Allan Redekopp says there is inadequate late night taxi service for his customers. Subag Singh, owner of Osoyoos Taxi, defends his service, but says improvements to the phone system will be made. (Keith Lacey photo)

The owner of a popular Osoyoos pub says he’s had enough of the inadequate late night service being offered to his customers by the town’s only taxi cab company.

But the owner of Osoyoos Taxi, Subag Singh, insists his drivers would never refuse to provide service, although he does acknowledge there are issues that are his company’s fault when it comes to answering calls for taxi service during the busy “weekend bar rush.”

Singh committed to improving his phone answering service so that all calls placed are responded to as quickly as possible.

Allan Redekopp, the owner and manager of The Sage Pub, which his family has owned since 1997, said the lack of quality taxi service in town has become a “huge problem” for his business and customers.

“This has been going on for at least three years … and got to the point where I have started documenting every time we can’t get a cab at our pub,” he said. “It’s a growing concern to say the least.”

Redekopp said this has been an ongoing problem dating back to Christmas of 2015 when he had a few drinks at his own pub and called a cab.

“It was the Christmas season and I know cab companies are busy, but I waited for a couple of hours and couldn’t get a cab,” he said. “I ended up walking home in bitterly cold weather and I wasn’t happy.

“It happened three more times over that holiday season … and it has been happening far too often ever since. We own a business that relies on having our local taxi company provide good service and our customers provide a large chunk of that company’s business. Not being able to get a cab late at night, especially during the summer on the weekends, has become a real concern.”

Redekopp said he has voiced his concerns to Singh and several of his drivers on more than one occasion, but not much has changed.

Singh, who has owned Osoyoos Taxi for 10 years and has been in the taxi business ever since moving to Canada from Fiji 35 years ago, said his company would never refuse service, especially to the bars “that are our biggest customer, by far, during the evening hours.”

Singh admitted his current phone system is not adequate and it has resulted in some calls being missed and he will be upgrading his phone system in the near future.

“The voice message system is my error … and I will be trying to fix it very soon,” he said.

On a busy Friday and Saturday night in Osoyoos, he has three cabs on the road and often calls in a fourth (one of the two cabs he operates in Oliver), said Singh.

When there are literally dozens of people waiting for a cab near closing time of 2 a.m. on the weekends when The Sage Pub and other bars get ready to close, the reality is a lot of people are going to be unhappy “and have to wait … and often they don’t want to wait,” he said.

He insists his drivers have never intentionally refused to answer a call to The Sage Pub or any other establishment in town.

“Bars are our main business at night and it would be business suicide for us to not answer calls,” he said. “I’ve been in this business for over 35 years … and it is the same everywhere … when you call a cab, you might have to wait.”

When his drivers drop off customers and drivers return to The Sage Pub after 2:30 most often all customers have left, he said.

Redekopp said he’s become so concerned about this issue, especially in an age when drinking and driving is so frowned upon, that he has contacted the Ministry of Transportation on several occasions to find out what taxi providers must adhere to in order to keep their taxi licences.

“What I did find out is to keep your license you have to adhere to certain regulations,” he said. “If a customer calls and he has to wait 45 minutes or an hour, I fully understand.

“But if you call and simply can’t get a ride because no one will answer the phone, it’s a big problem. This problem has to be solved.”

The crux of the problem is the inability to get taxi service has resulted in some unhappy customers jumping in their vehicles and risking public safety by drinking and driving, said Redekopp.

“We had two guys from Alberta in last week … and they jumped on their bikes (motorcycles) when they couldn’t get a cab,” he said. “They phoned me from their hotel and told me they got home safe, but I told them they were banned because I warned them not to drive.

“But that was the incident that broke the proverbial camel’s back and forced me to go public.”

Singh reiterated his company has never refused service, but didn’t deny sometimes customers have to wait much longer than they want to for a cab.

On a normal day, service is provided on a first-come, first-serve basis, but that simply doesn’t happen during a bar rush on a Saturday night in the summer, he said.

“Those who get cabs outside the bar are usually those who are most aggressive,” he said. “If the first guy who called for a cab thinks he’s going to get the cab when a bunch of people are outside, that’s just not possible.”

Singh said he’s not upset that Redekopp has launched a complaint about Osoyoos Taxi because he understands his frustration, but “there’s only so much you can do during the bar rush … and not everyone is going to be happy.”

There have also been many occasions when a call has been placed from The Sage Pub and there has been no one there for his drivers to pick up, he said.

“That has happened on many, many occasions and I’ve never once complained … it’s part of the business,” he said.

With no restaurants open in town at closing time, many customers stop at the local 7-11 to grab some food and it can take more than half an hour to complete a fare, which affects other customers looking for a cab, he said.

Singh said he’s elected to use vans instead of cars during the busy tourist season in order to try and accommodate more customers.

His company has committed to “providing service 24 hours a day” during his 10 years as owner of Osoyoos Taxi and insisted that won’t change.

He will also be contacting the ministry to apply for a sixth license to improve service in the coming weeks, he said.

He’s more than willing to meet with Redekopp at any time to discuss his concerns and try and improve service, he said.

KEITH LACEY

Osoyoos Times

Sage Pub owner Allan Redekopp is frustrated with difficulties his customers have getting taxi service at night. (Keith Lacey photo)