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Montreal taxi drivers stalled by new background check rules
Some Montreal taxi drivers say long waits for criminal background checks are leaving them unable to drive their cabs.
The new rules, which came into effect last month, require all taxi drivers to clear a background check before renewing their taxi permits.
Farid Tabarzini tried to renew his permit on Jan. 6, eight days before it was set to expire. He was surprised to find out the wait times for processing a background check are between two and five weeks.
"How do I know it takes that long?" said Tabarzini, who has been driving a cab in Montreal for 15 years.
"I thought, you give them two pieces of ID and they check... 48 hours maximum."
Shahram Shawnfar's permit expired two days ago. He was told he wasn't allowed to drive his taxi until his background check was complete.
"I don't know what to do," said Shawnfar.
"I have kids. I have a family I have to support."
Under Quebec law, anyone caught operating a taxi without a valid permit can face a fine of up to $1,050 and could even have their vehicle seized.
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