Alexandre Taillefer an important ally in quest to quell taxi unrest

As the Quebec government works to get taxi drivers on board with theUber pilot project, the man who controls 40 per cent of Montreal's taxi market will be an important ally.

Alexandre Taillefer launched his all-electric taxi company, To Taxi, to polite applause last year. It was, after all,asocially minded business venture in an industry allergic to innovation.

But whenTaillefer'scompany,Taxelco, bought outTaxi Diamond last month, he suddenly became thegiant of the Montreal taxi industry, having already acquiredHochelagaTaxi.

• Taxi drivers hold off on work stoppage to protest Uber deal

He made that added weight felt on Sunday.

Taillefer, standing outside the Ritz-Carleton, warned his drivers they could lose their affiliation with his companies if they resorted to work stoppages to protest the Uber deal.

"We sent a clear message,"he told Radio-Canada, and repeated the message to other media outlets as well.

Whether or not his warning registered, the drivers opted to delay holding a stoppage, at least for the time being. That will be relief for the Liberal government, for whom the Uber file has been nothing buta persistent headache.

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A budding bromance?

What became clear at a rowdy meetingheld by drivers on Sunday in Montreal is that they are desperate to have the government backtrack on its deal with Uber, which will allow the ride-hailing service to operate legallyfor at least the next year.

In exchange, the government will get a payment from Uber for each ride it offers.

Taillefer defended the deal, calling the concessions won by the government"unparalleledin the world."

• What's in the Uber deal?

Premier Philippe Couillard, for his part, has made no secret of his fondness forTaillefer and his business. He has repeatedly cited To as the model the taxi industry should emulate in order to modernize itself.

In Couillard's eyes, the app-basedTocombines the social-economy and social-media friendly elements of Uber with the regulated dimension of the taxi industry.

Taillefer, moreover, has promised to gradually introduce greener vehicles tohis Montreal taxi fleetand maketheir service more professional. This, he claims, will allow him tobeat Uber at its own game, i.e. being cheap and easy to use.

It's all music to Couillard's ears.

"At the end of the day if you provide what the customer wants, you'll win," Couillardsaid last week, discussingTaillefer. "What I like in his attitude is the fact thatfrom the start he says 'bringthem on. I'll compete with them and I'll beat them'."

• Taxi drivers call Quebec deal with Uber 'betrayal'

How (not) to make friends

Therein may lie Couillard's unstated hope with the Uber deal:that it will buyTaillefer, and the taxi industry in general, enough time to develop a business model that will force the ride-hailing into a more marginal market position.

The Quebec government, though, is not exactly an impartial player when it comes toTaillefer's venture.

Investissement Qubec, the provincial economic development agency, has provided Taillefer'sprivate equity firm,XPND Capital, with$15 million in start-up money. The Caisse de dpt et placement du Qubecprovided another $15 million.

The investment decisions of both the Caisse and IQ are taken independently of the Liberal government. Couillard nevertheless has a political stake in the success of a home-grown rival to Uber that can appease upset taxi drivers.

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ButTaillefer'sembrace of the Uber deal, and his hardline against a work stoppage,won him few friends among Montreal's anxious cabbies.

"He thinks for himself only, he doesn't think for the small guy," one taxi driver told a CBC reporter outside their meeting on Sunday.

"We are the ones doing the job. He's in the office, playing with his computer."

It's not clear how much peace thislittle-loved boss can bring the taxi industry.