The presence of a taxi in Smithers this week after BV Taxi closed its doors at end of January raised a bit of exitement in town.
Christine Dominic, owner of Hazelton’s Thunderbird Taxi service was just driving through Smithers and said she didn’t even know BV Taxi was gone until the calls started coming into her office.
“When I was in town I had a lot of calls stating they need a taxi,” she said. “They had seen me go by and saw my number.”
Dominic, who has been running the service out of Hazelton since 2005 now has plans to apply to extend her licence into Smithers, Telkwa and possibly Houston.
“I have one vehicle now but this way I could maybe get two more…. have one in Smithers,” she said.
Her current licence allows her to operate from Cedervale to Moricetown. She can also go to the Smithers and Terrace airports if her customer is being picked up or dropped off from the Hazelton area. She is also allowed to pick up and drop off CN workers in Prince George or Prince Rurpert in emergency cases.
READ MORE: Smithers only taxi company closing down
Currently, she runs the company with one vehicle and her husband drives it sometimes. Her son also drives the cab occasionally and Dominic said she’d love to add more vehicles to her fleet to give her son a full time job.
In order to get an extension in her service area she said she will need to do a new business plan for the area and will need a letter from the Town of Smithers expressing the need of a taxi company.
Acting mayor Gladys Atrill said the Town has not yet received a request for such a letter, but believes it would be something the Town would provide.
“If there is someone who would like to provide taxi service to Smithers, I imagine council would be supportive,” she said.
marisca.bakker@interior-news.com
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