Sunshine Coast ride-hailing company gets green light to hit road
Credit to Author: Scott Brown| Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2020 22:21:22 +0000
The Passenger Transportation Board has given approval to a Sechelt-based company to provide ride-hailing services in the Sunshine Coast and other regions.
Coastal Rides, which is the sixth licensed ride-hailing operation in the province, received approval Friday to operate its app-based service in two of the province’s five ride-hailing operating area: Region 3 (Vancouver Island excluding the Capital Region District) and Region 4 (B.C. North Central) which includes the Sunshine Coast.
“The mission of Coastal Rides is to make travel on the Sunshine Coast without a private vehicle the preferred option. With affordable convenient service, visitors and residents will be able to leave their own car at home,” Coastal Rides owner Ryan Jay Staley explained in his Oct. 30, 2019 application to the PTB.
Coastal Rides intends to serve the communities of Sechelt, Gibsons, Halfmoon Bay, Pender Harbour, and all points between Egmont and Port Melon.
Staley doesn’t expect the service to hit the road until mid-March at the earliest.
“We have a number of drivers who have expressed interest but they still have to go through police checks … and that will take at least two weeks,” said Staley.
The PTB also denied five other applications on Friday.
B.C. Ride Hailing Areas
Earlier this month, the PTB approved Richmond-based Kabu Ride to operate in all regions of the province and Apt Rides to operate in Region 1 (Lower Mainland, Whistler).
Ride-hailing giants Uber and Lyft were both approved to operate in Region 1 in January, while Tofino-based Green Coast ventures, operating as Whistle and WhistleRide, was the first to be approved in B.C., after receiving a licence in December to operate in both Regions 1 and 3.