poses August 28, Classified 986-6222 Distribution 986-1337 44 pages NEWS photo Terry Peters § MICHAEL LIAN and some of the other children at the Novaco day-care centre try out the sports umbrellas recently donated to the facility. The day care received nine of the football helmet-shaped umbrellas. SUNSHINE CABS Ltd.'s attempt to provide service to the airport to customers outside its North Shore home base has rolled down a dead-end street. An Aug. 17 B.C. cabinet com- mittee order in council denied Sunshine’s application to appeal to cabinet a licence amendment that would have allowed its drivers to pick up fares anywhere in B.C. and take them to the Vancouver International Airport. No reasons were given for the denial. The order upheld a Dec. 30, 1987 Motor Carrier Commission (MCC) decision that had granted Sunshine the right to pick up fares at the airport and take them anywhere in the province, but had turned down the ‘‘vice versa’’ por- tion of the application. Sunshine had subsequently been granted a review of that decision, which was heard in April and May. When the MCC review upheld its original decision, Sunshine appeal- ed to the B.C. cabinet, which ap- pointed a three-member committee made up of Municipal Affairs Minister Rita Johnston, Provincial Secretary Bill Reid and Minister of Regional Development Elwood Veitch. “We were disappointed, yes," Sunshine president Norm Einarsson said Friday, ‘‘but also surprised that, after all this time and all the recommendations that changes were advantageous, a free enterprise governinent chose to go the regulatory route.’’ MCC director of operations Paul Starek said the cabinet deci- sion is the final step for Sunshine in its pursuit of amendments to the terms of its airport service. “But they could reapply if they have new evidence showing public need for the service,”’ he said. Sunshine, which launched a fleet of luxury cabs in March 1982, has spearheaded the concept of regional taxi licensing, which would allow taxi companies to pick up in any municipality, for the past two years and initially ap- plied for its airport licence amendments 15 months ago. Current MCC regulations state that Lower Mainland taxi com- panies can drive passengers from their home base to any point in B.C., but fares can be picked up outside that home base only if firm prior arrangements have been made. Sunshine has argued that regional licensing would stimulate competition and thereby provide better service to the public and more efficient use of taxis throughout the Lower Mainland. The concept has been vehement- ly opposed by the Vancouver Taxi Owners Association (WTOA), which argues that regional licens- ing would create taxi chaos and leave outlying municipalities in- adequately serviced while cabs abandoned their home base and descended on the lucrative downtown market. It would also devalue Vancouver taxi licences. The last Vancouver cab and licence sold for $94,000. VTOA representatives opposed Sunshine’s airport application on the grounds that, among other “We were ... surprised that, after all this time and all the recommendations that changes were advantageous, a free enterprise government chose to go the regulatory route.’’ — Sunshine president, Norm Einarsson things, it represented ‘‘a back-door approach” to regional taxi licens- ing. Solicitor General Angus Ree, who now has authority over the MCC and could institute taxi licensing changes, said Friday the government “‘is continuing to look at’’ regional taxi licensing. But he said it could take up to 10 years to institute. Einarsson said Sunshine pursued its application as far as it could be pursued in hopes that it would ini- tiate changes in the Lower Mainland taxi industry. Though all avenues have been exhausted in Sunshine’s airport application attempt, the MCC has recognized demand for the com- pany’s service from people in the film, tourist and tour industries. Sunshine has consequently been granted temporary permits to ser- vice exclusive contracts with three film companies, two travel agen- cies and two tour companies. Under those contracts, Sunshine can pick up prearranged fares from those companies anywhere in B.C. and take them to the Van- couver airport.