The Uber app is displayed on an iPhone while taxi drivers wait for pbadengers at the Vancouver International Airport in Richmond, British Columbia on March 7, 2017.
DARRYL DYCK / The Canadian Press
BC The government says it will not honor its election promise to allow Uber and Lyft to offer transportation services until the fall 2019, a delay of more than a year that the province needs to modernize the taxi service in order to
These measures, described in a report by the Dan taxi industry expert Hara and released Thursday, include increasing the number of taxis in British Columbia. 15% and allowing taxis to offer discounted rates when trips are booked through an app corresponding to ridesharing practices. "We know that people are frustrated and waiting too long for a solution in the absence of" Claire Trevena, BC's Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure, said Thursday in Vancouver [19659005] History Continues Under Advertisement
"We wanted to make sure we added, not removed, good local jobs while laying the foundation for a product made in British Columbia"
The British Columbia NDP promised during the 2016 spring election campaign that it would allow transit services by the means of transportation at the end of 2017. This has been postponed. in the fall of 2018 and now "in the fall of 2019."
Ridesharing Now for BC – a coalition that includes the British Columbia Restaurant and Food Services Association and the Board of Surrey's Trade, among others – stated that he was "extremely He was disappointed by the last delay and said that the time to allow services has long since pbaded.
Trevena rejected a characterization by a journalist that B.C. was "so far behind".
"I would not say we are far behind the time," said the minister. "We do things very methodically to keep the people of British Columbia safe, those who are looking for an attraction, as well as those who provide transportation."
The 15 p. The increase in the number of taxis recommended by Mr. Hara raises about 300 additional taxis in the Lower Mainland and another 200 in the rest of the province. He also recommends a managed taxi service that can be developed at a pace that provides some protection to those who have made big investments in taxi licenses.
A one-way tax for new taxis – paid by the company and not by the customer that a new taxi "would enter the market only if growth in consumer demand is enough to make the new taxi profitable, "says the report. An overlap in provincial and municipal jurisdiction could also be modified to allow taxis more permissive rules on return trips.
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It also suggests establishing a provincial authority to issue taxi driver's licenses "to fill a jurisdictional gap where, currently, drivers in small communities and rural communities may not be required to pbad criminal record checks. "
The report notes that following the introduction of such services in the number of trips by taxi and car has increased. Calgary, which requires full public reporting, found that combined taxi and carpool trips increased 26 percent after a year of licensed carpool operations.
Calculations based on partial data from Toronto suggest a 48% increase The total number of trips after two years of riding in this city, while calculations from Ottawa indicate a 75% increase in total number after a year.
Iain Black, President and CEO of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade, saw the announcement as another unnecessary delay for transit services.
"There is absolutely no reason for that [delay]," said Mr. Black. "We continue to be an international embarrbadment when visitors come to our city."
b.c. The chairman of the Taxi Association, Mohan Kang, said the suggestions contained in Mr. Hara's report seem positive, but that he will need time to review the details with his board of directors. ;administration.
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