ARE you a taxi driver? If you are, it’s time to start buckling up, warns North Vancouver RCMP.

Taxi drivers used to be exempt from wearing seatbelts under Section 32.02 of the Motor Vehicle Act, as long as they remained under 70km/h. But that exemption ended when Section 32.02 was repealed on September 15, 2019.

Now taxi drivers must all wear seatbelts, just like everyone else. Any cabbie caught without a seatbelt on may receive a violation ticket under Section 220(4) of the Motor Vehicle Act with a fine amount of $167 (but no points.)

“Thankfully this closes one more door on a past that was blind to the simple fact that seatbelts save lives,” said RCMP Sgt. Peter DeVries on Friday.