The City of Calgary started issuing violation tickets to Uber drivers Friday.

During a press conference, manager of Calgary’s Compliance Services Marc Halat said undercover operations targeting private for-hire vehicles, are ongoing.

“The offenders here are the drivers,” he said.

“The drivers are the ones that are operating without the adequate insurance, without the adequate oversight in terms of police checks, without the adequate standard of maintenance of the vehicle.”

Halat would not provide an exact number of tickets issued, but said “multiple violations on individuals are being processed as we speak.”

“We don’t want to have two different existing modes of transportation that are working from different playbooks,” said Halat.

The city says drivers currently operating private for-hire vehicles may be subject to a fine amounting to $1,500.

However, city administration is set to appear before council Nov. 16, to outline possible options the city has going forward that would allow companies like Uber to operate while ensuring the public’s safety.

Halat presented those proposals to the city’s taxi and limousine advisory committee Friday morning.

“We welcome new market interest, this is a good thing for Calgary,” said Halat, who added that taxi services currently struggle to meet peak hour demands.

“But we can’t compromise the public safety doing it.”

Uber, a ride sharing app connecting drivers and customers, currently operates in a number of Canadian cities including Edmonton.

It launched its services in Calgary Oct. 15, and an Uber spokesperson has said the company will pay the fines of drivers ticketed in addition to offering legal support to those who need it.

“As we saw from recent court rulings in Alberta and Ontario, Uber is a unique business that is distinct from taxi,” Uber spokesperson Jean-Christophe De Le Rue said in a press release Friday.

“We believe that a regulatory solution is the best path forward.

“A recent poll indicated 85% of Calgarians support having the opportunity to experience Uber while regulations are being considered.

“We remain committed to working with City Council and staff to establish a permanent regulatory framework for ridesharing in Calgary.”

Friday, the city taxi and limousine committee was also handed a separate report showing a sharp drop in 2015 taxi customers.

Numbers for the year so far are down 11% from the nearly 6.3 million trips taken in the same time period last year.

And in the third quarter of 2015, trip volumes saw a more dramatic drop of 16% compared to the same time last year.