Montreal taxi drivers and Uber are addressing the provincial government Thursday in the first day of public hearings into transportation.

The provincial government has several questions for the app-based transportation company, including how it is paying taxes.

Transportation Minister Jacques Daoust said he is open to new technology, but doesn't want it to be an invitation to tax evasion.

"Now is it possible to recover money? I may ask Uber: is it possible to have access to your system so that I know who you have paid and who should be taxed?" he said.

The Quebec division of the multibillion-dollar company will be the second group to speak at the hearings.

Jean-Nicholas Guillemette said Uber is open to regulation -- as long as it is able to continue operating.

"We are going to the commission today to ask the government to regulate the ridesharing companies and the ridesharing services like Uber and make sure that this regulatory framework that they will put in place will embrace technology and modernity but will also allow all parties and all types of companies that offer transport in Quebec to continue to operate, to continue to grow, but mainly to continue to serve the population," he said.

Uber has become popular among some users for its cheaper prices, and for its rating system that allows customers to rate drivers, and for drivers to rate customers.

The company began operating in Montreal in 2014, and hundreds of drivers had their vehicles seized because they were not obeying provincial laws and municipal bylaws concerning licensing and permits.

Taxi drivers have been been demanding the provincial government do more to stop Uber from operating, saying that it is not fair to ask them to pay extra fees and not demand the same from Uber drivers.

The PQ has tabled a new bill aimed at cracking down on what it calls "illegal taxis." Transport critic Martine Ouellette is calling on the government to hit Uber drivers with demerit points.

“In the meantime, when we're doing the parliamentary commission, it's important that we have tools to suspend illegal activities and that's one more tool,” she said.

On Wednesday taxi drivers protested against Uber once again, in a demonstration that saw a low point when an Uber driver and his vehicle were pelted with eggs.

Benoit Jugand, spokesperson for the Steelworkers Union which represents about half of the taxi drivers in Montreal, said taxi drivers are not trying to stop progress.

"If they would have made a truce and said they would stop their application during the hearings, the time that the government is working, then it would be okay. But they're not doing that," said Jugand.

Cities, provinces and countries around the world have struggled to deal with the rise of the smartphone and how it is affecting decades-old legal frameworks regarding transportation. 

A recent poll suggests Canadians support allowing Uber to operate as long as the company is regulated.