Another ride-hailing company has been approved to launch on Vancouver Island.
On May 13, the independent Passenger Transportation Board (PTB) announced it had approved Ripe Rides (Ripe Holdings Inc.) to operate in the Capital Regional District (CRD) and the rest of Vancouver Island.
Ripe Rides can also run in the Lower Mainland, Whistler; Okanagan Kootenays-Cariboo; and BC North Central & Other Regions of B.C.
Also on Wednesday, the PTB announced Bonny’s Taxi (Bonny’s Taxi Ltd) can operate in Lower Mainland, Whistler.
The two companies are the latest to be approved since B.C. allowed ride-hailing in the province, after years of government process.
Transportation Minister Clare Trevena has said the lengthy process involved amending transportation service laws to accommodate ride-hailing and the existing taxi service and to ensure safety for passengers and drivers.
The PTB approved major ride-hailing companies Uber and Lyft on Jan. 23.
The next steps for companies approved by the PTB before they can get vehicles on the road involve securing proper insurance and working with the municipalities in the approved operating areas to ensure bylaw compliance.
READ MORE: Victoria ride-hailing company Lucky to Go receives regulatory approval
On Thursday, the PTB said it had declined the ride-hailing applications for Jatinder Singh Gill, Comox Taxi Ltd., Swiftsure Taxi Co. Ltd., and VI Ride Hailing (Duncan Taxi Ltd). Those companies had applied to operate in Vancouver Island, outside of the CRD.
The application for Dad’s, Dial a Driver and Dad’s DD (all under Dad’s Dial a Driver Services) was declined. It had applied to operate in Lower Mainland, Whistler; Capital Regional District; Vancouver Island outside the CRD; Okanagan-Kootenays-Cariboo and BC North Central & Other Regions of BC.
Copies of the decisions can be viewed in the PT Board Bulletin of May 13, 2020.
The board said it has received a total of 39 ride-hailing applications to date and with Wednesday’s announcement, has issued decisions on 32 of them.
CHEK News
