Personal chauffeurs for hire: North Bay service offers peace of mind for distance travellers.

AuthorKelly, Lindsay
PositionNORTH BAY

Travellers who eschew air travel but need to get to out-of-town appointments now have a personalized service in North Bay.

My Chauffeur is a new, door-to-door option offered by Northern Airport Service, which expands on the scheduled driving service already offered by the company.

"We have a lot of people that use our service to get to Toronto for medical appointments, and we also have a number of businesspeople that use our service to get to Toronto for business appointments," explained Mike Ianiro, the owner-operator of Northern Airport Service.

But the twice-daily scheduled trips south, which deliver riders to the Toronto Pearson International Airport, aren't always an exact fit with clients' needs.

After being dropped off by Northern Airport Service, some still have to then take the express train or an airport limo to get to their final destination, Ianiro said. At times, if an appointment goes later than expected, clients can end up staying overnight in Toronto so they can catch the next scheduled ride back the next day.

But, reasoned Ianiro, many of his clients have perfectly good reliable vehicles sitting unused in their driveways at home.

Some just don't feel comfortable driving on the highway, while others prefer not to drive long distances.

The solution, he decided, was a personalized chauffeur service using the client's own vehicle.

"If somebody needs to get to wherever they're going and has a vehicle, but wants the convenience of a private car service, but doesn't want to pay the limo rates, it's a good in-between fit," Ianiro said.

"They hire the driver, the driver takes them to where they're going, they use their vehicle, and because they're using their vehicle, they're comfortable in there; they have their stuff with them, and it just seems to work really well."

The standard rate is $39 per hour--cheaper than taking a cab--but Ianiro said he and his drivers are happy to tailor the fee depending on a client's circumstance.

"Sometimes, if you have a client that's maybe going to Toronto and the driver's going to be sitting there for four or five hours while they're in a doctor's appointment, we work around it to give the client the benefit of the...

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