{"id":744631,"date":"2026-06-18T09:04:22","date_gmt":"2026-06-18T09:04:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/744631\/"},"modified":"2026-06-18T09:04:22","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T09:04:22","slug":"mayor-of-lunenburg-n-s-banned-from-taxi-service-after-alleged-late-night-fracas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/744631\/","title":{"rendered":"Mayor of Lunenburg, N.S., banned from taxi service after alleged late-night fracas"},"content":{"rendered":"

LUNENBURG \u2014 The mayor of a tourist hot spot on Nova Scotia\u2019s southwestern coast has been banned from using a taxi service in the community for allegedly being involved in a drunken, late-night confrontation with a driver. <\/p>\n

The Town of Lunenburg, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and home to the famous Bluenose II racing schooner, has confirmed it\u2019s investigating allegations against Mayor Jamie Myra. The RCMP said they responded to a dispute between a cab driver and a client in the town core around 2 a.m. Saturday, but no charges were laid.<\/p>\n

Simon Gordon, owner of SaltWind Transportation, said he received numerous calls and texts from the mayor Friday night asking for a ride across town for him and a small group of people after 1 a.m. The taxi owner said Myra and his group were inebriated when he arrived. The mayor \u201cchucked\u201d a $50 bill at him and urged him to allow more passengers than there were seatbelts, Gordon said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis party was larger than he had indicated on the phone, and there was a lot of pressure from (Myra) \u2026 and his response was: \u2018no, no, it\u2019s OK. Do you need more money?\u2019 So that\u2019s what started the escalation,\u201d Gordon said in an interview Tuesday.<\/p>\n

When the taxi owner refused, a woman from Myra\u2019s party started \u201cscreaming and yelling,\u201d and the mayor would not get out of the car despite repeated requests, Gordon said. <\/p>\n

\u201cOne individual was seemingly being held back by someone, he was making very aggressive threats towards me physically. That\u2019s when I decided, and said to (Myra), I\u2019m going to call 911 if you don\u2019t leave the car,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The cab owner said the mayor did not leave the vehicle until Gordon called the police over the taxi speakerphone and Myra\u2019s wife \u201cdragged him\u201d from the car. The incident lasted about 15 minutes in total, he said.<\/p>\n

Gordon said the mayor called him four times and left him two voicemails and two texts apologizing Saturday for the group\u2019s behaviour. <\/p>\n

When the pair spoke on the phone, the mayor suggested he would support the taxi owner\u2019s efforts to bring a transit system to the town, Gordon said, and \u201cwould be willing to work with me on anything related to my business and he would like to sit down next week to discuss.\u201d<\/p>\n

The mayor also allegedly warned Gordon that his friends and family would \u201ccome after\u201d him and his business on social media if the events of early Saturday morning were made public.<\/p>\n

A spokesperson with the Town of Lunenburg said the mayor will not be commenting on the incident beyond a statement he made Monday on social media saying he\u2019s aware of the allegations against him. <\/p>\n

\u201cI have a much different version of the events than they do, I will say this, and that\u2019s it. I support and congratulate (Gordon) on his new business venture as it\u2019s certainly needed in our community,\u201d reads the mayor\u2019s Facebook post.<\/p>\n

\u201cI won\u2019t be engaging further on social media or any other media channels,\u201d reads the post.<\/p>\n

Prior to the weekend confrontation, Gordon said he had been working with the town\u2019s chief administrative officer on plans to set up a fixed-route bus or shuttle service that would offer transit to residents of the coastal community and the area\u2019s many visitors. <\/p>\n

Gordon\u2019s company obtained a taxi licence from Lunenburg in April, and since then has been operating cab service in the rural community with few transit options. The company has one vehicle and a few part-time drivers, Gordon said, adding that he hopes to expand. <\/p>\n

\u201cLunenburg has about 400,000 tourists that descend upon the town every year, that\u2019s a big transportation need,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The historic fishing village was laid out by British army engineers in 1753 and later recognized by the United Nations for being one of the world\u2019s best-preserved examples of a British settlement.<\/p>\n

Gordon said he had planned to continue offering late-night rides to summer tourists and residents on Fridays and Saturdays, but he\u2019s scaling back in light of this weekend\u2019s events. Going forward, service will stop at 10 p.m. seven days a week. Gordon said any threats of violence or requests to break transportation laws will result in refusal of service and a ban.<\/p>\n

\u201cSafety is paramount. When someone starts to escalate things the way that this party was, while intoxicated, it creates a level of unpredictability that I would not want to put another employee in front of \u2026 so that\u2019s why we had to make these changes,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Gordon said prior to this past weekend he\u2019d been thinking about running for town council, and he\u2019s feeling more inclined to put his name forward after the events of this past weekend. <\/p>\n

For now, he said, the mayor won\u2019t be getting back into his cab. <\/p>\n

\u201cMr. Myra, his family and several other members of his group have been permanently banned from SaltWind Transportation Services.\u201d<\/p>\n

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 17, 2026.<\/p>\n

\u2014 by Lyndsay Armstrong in Halifax.<\/p>\n

The Canadian Press<\/p>\n

\t\tKeep it Factual<\/p>\n

Add CityNews Halifax as a trusted source on Google to see more local stories from us.<\/p>\n

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