The ride of your life: Ride-hailing finally arrives in Vancouver
Credit to Author: Lora Grindlay| Date: Fri, 24 Jan 2020 21:39:03 +0000
Both Uber and Lyft began operations Friday morning, just one day after B.C.’s Passenger Transportation Board gave the green light to ride-hailing services in Metro Vancouver.
Lyft held a press conference early Friday to launch its service — which is now operating — and Uber said its first official ride would take place at a morning press conference at east Vancouver’s Parallel 49 brewery. The app was set to go live at 11 a.m.
Lyft has launched with 388 standard vehicles and 23 zero-emission vehicles.
So far only Vancouver has issued business licences, which means passengers can only be picked up in Vancouver, but can be dropped off in other municipalities.
This comes after the two biggest ride-hailing services obtained business licences from the City of Vancouver and insurance policies from the Insurance Corporation of B.C. Thursday.
As of 8 a.m., the Lyft app, which is available from the App Store, was live. Lyft general manager Peter Lukomskyj made the announcement downtown Vancouver early Friday.
As an approved driver, Lukomskyj gave the inaugural ride in Vancouver, which was taken by Krista Thompson, CEO of Covenant House, and celebrity chef Vikram Vij, who appears in Lyft’s TV ads, to drop off donations at Covenant House.
General manager for Lyft B.C. Peter Lukomskyj and Covenant House CEO Krista Thompson speak at a news conference in Vancouver Friday after the ride-hailing company was given approval to operate in Vancouver.
Lyft B.C. GM Peter Lukomskyj gives celebrity chef Vikram Vij and Covenant House CEO Krista Thompson the inaugural ride in Vancouver Friday after the ride-hailing company was given approval to operate in Vancouver.
Lyft also announced it will donate $5 per ride for the first 10,000 Lyft rides taken in the region to Covenant House Vancouver.
Lukomskyj said it has been a long time coming but the wait is finally over.
“Now that Lyft has launched, we’re excited to offer riders a new way to explore their city, and drivers a flexible way to earn income,” he said at the launch. “Today, we have Lyft off.”
Starting today, Lyft will serve the Vancouver International Airport, Pacific National Exhibition and the City of Vancouver core bordered by Dunbar Street, 41st Avenue and Victoria Drive.
As more drivers join the community, Lyft plans to expand its operating area.
Lyft previously announced Covenant House Vancouver as its Round Up and Donate partner, letting riders opt-in to round up their payment to the nearest dollar and donate the difference.
Uber has released its pricing structure, and said it will service North and West Vancouver, Vancouver, Burnaby, Richmond, Surrey, Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and parts of Delta.
Booking will cost $2, plus a base fare of $2.50. Every kilometre will cost 70 cents and every minute of travel will be 33 cents (or $19.80 an hour).
As for Lyft, there is a minimum fare of $5, and then 65 cents per kilometre and 33 cents per minute (or $19.80 an hour). The company is seeking drivers to work out of three hub locations in Surrey, Richmond and Vancouver. Those interested in becoming a driver can visit lyft.com/vancouver.
The prices are cheaper than taking a cab. For example, Yellow Cab in Vancouver charges $3.25 as a base fare and then $1.88 per kilometre, and $33.55 an hour. Black Top and Checker Cabs’ rates are the same as Yellow Cab.
Due to speak at the long-anticipated Uber launch will be Uber’s Michael van Hemmen, Western Canadian head, Tracy Crawford from Mothers Against Drunk Driving and Teri Towner, a City of Coquitlam councillor.
Elsewhere in B.C., the process to set up ride-hailing may take a few more days. In Vancouver, it was expedited by Mayor Kennedy Stewart.
Uber and Lyft will have to go to each municipality for a local business licence, where one is available, and they will face differing fees, requirements and processing times.
But in Surrey, the process is sure to be more difficult. Mayor Doug McCallum has pledged allegiance to the taxi sector and vowed to use the local business-licence process as a way to block or restrict ride-hailing.
— With files from Rob Shaw and The Canadian Press
CLICK HERE to report a typo.
Is there more to this story? We’d like to hear from you about this or any other stories you think we should know about. Email vantips@postmedia.com.