Uber drivers will be allowed to legally operate in late October

The pilot project allowing Uber drivers to operate in Quebec will start in late October.

The provincial government and the app-based transportation company worked out an agreement in early September to legally allow Uber drivers to operate in Quebec.

However it was only late Friday Sept. 30 that the government published the details of the agreement in its Official Gazette.

• Read the details of the agreement

That means that after 20 days' review by the public, Uber drivers will be allowed to operate in the Greater Montreal and Quebec City regions, as well as several other municipalities.

In the agreement, Uber agreed to restrict its driver to 50,000 hours of fares per week, the equivalent of 300 taxi drivers. During those hours, drivers will have to pay 90 cents per fare as a tax to the province.

Should drivers exceed that number, the tax will go up to $1.10 per fare for the next 50,000 hours, after which it will be raised again, to $1.26.

The company will also be required to do criminal background checks on all its drivers and ensure they are all properly licensed and cars are in proper working order.

The company’s drivers will also not be permitted to use road lanes reserved for taxis and buses.

The pilot project can run for up to three years before the Transport Minister will be forced to come up with a permanent solution.

Since the agreement was reached taxi drivers have launched two court challenges in an attempt to have it blocked. They were denied injunctions granting an immediate ban, but hearings will take place in January.

Over the past month dozens of Uber drivers have had their cars seized and been fined $7,500 and more.