Province promises to clarify its ride-hailing stance by May election
Posted March 3, 2017 10:13 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Following a lot of uncertainty over the last couple of years, it looks like the provincial government will soon clarify its stance on the future of ride-hailing companies, like Uber, before the May provincial election.
Minister responsible for TransLink Peter Fassbender says there is a reason a decision has taken so long.
Fassbender made the comments about ride-hailing at the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade’s Annual Transportation Summit today and he explains BC was just doing its due diligence. “The reason we’ve taken our time is we’ve looked around the world. We’ve looked at the good, the bad, and the ugly that has happened in that industry. We said we are not just going to open the doors without ensuring that we have as level a playing field as we can.”
He adds that includes the taxi industry in BC, not just Metro Vancouver. “The government has said, ‘We are going to develop a made-in-BC solution for this issue.’ And we’re going to do it remembering that it isn’t just about providing new opportunities but respecting the existing industry.”
Fassbender acknowledges it needs to modernize more than it already has, adding the province would help it do that. However, he say no official decision has been made either way. “We’ve been pressured by a number of people. The public has said to us, ‘We want more choice.'”
