Passenger Transportation Board announced Thursday that ride hail companies Uber and Lyft have been approved to operate in B.C.'s Lower Mainland and Whistler.
The Passenger Transportation Board, which is an independent licensing tribunal, is mandated to make decisions on applications relating to passenger directed vehicles in British Columbia, including ride hailing authorizations.
The Board said it has completed its review of four additional applications from ride hailing companies:
Uber Canada Inc. and Lyft Canada Inc. have been approved to operate in Region 1: Lower Mainland, Whistler.
The Board has declined to approve the application of ReRyde Technologies Inc. to operate in Region 2: Capital Regional District (CRD); Region 3 – Vancouver Island, excluding CRD; and Region 4 – Okanagan-Kootenays-Cariboo and of Kater Technologies Inc. to operate in Region 1: Lower Mainland, Whistler; Region 2: Capital Regional District; Region 3 – Vancouver Island, excluding CRD; Region 4 – Okanagan-Kootenays-Cariboo; and Region 5 – BC North Central & Other Regions of BC.
The decisions were made after a careful review of the extensive materials received during the application process which included supporting information provided by the applicants and submissions from interested members of the public and stakeholders
The Registrar has been directed to issue licences to Uber Canada Inc. and Lyft Canada Inc. Next steps for the approved applicants after receiving licences from the Registrar are to secure appropriate motor vehicle insurance and to work with municipalities in their operating areas to ensure compliance with local by-laws.
The Board has received a total of 29 ride hailing applications to date and with today’s announcement has issued decisions on six of them.
The Board is in the process of reviewing pending applications and is working towards issuing further decisions on ride hailing applications as expeditiously as possible. The review process is taking time because of the large number of applications that have been filed and the significant volume of materials involved.