Ride sharing coming to BC in December 2017

Today the BC government announced that ride-sharing services would be allowed to operate in the province by end of 2017.

At the same time, Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Todd Stone outlined plans to help the taxi industry, with the introduction of measures that, “ensure a level playing field in B.C.”

These include:

• The Province will invest up to $1 million to help the taxi industry develop an app with ride-share capabilities, to better compete with ride-sharing companies.

• ICBC will invest up to $3.5 million in the taxi sector to install crash-avoidance technology in all B.C. taxis. Changes will also be made to the insurance of taxi operators, to make it more flexible and cost effective.

• Taxis will have exclusive rights to be flagged down at the curb, hired by phone, or at a taxi stand.

• The government plans to work with municipalities and other stakeholders to allow all drivers, including taxis to operate across municipal boundaries.

• The Province plans to address “the current shortage of taxis and vehicles for hire.”

• Steps will be taken to remove red tape and overlap within the system.

Taxis and ride-sharing providers will also be required to have the same safety standards. As part of this, Class 4 licenses will be phased out for taxi drivers, and taxi and ride-sharing companies will be responsible for maintaining records that prove:

• All drivers have an unrestricted driver’s licence; are at least 19 years of age; have passed a criminal record check for past convictions of violent or sexual offenses as well as other offenses; and have passed a safe driving record check.
• Vehicles have passed regular mechanical inspections.

The Province also stated that it “will make sure that appropriate safeguards are in place to protect consumers through fair and transparent pricing.”