Is Uber tricking Vancouverites – or planning a treat for people looking for a Halloween ride?
Rumours that the popular rideshare company will once again open up shop in Vancouver intensified on Thursday, after the company avoided answering whether they were planning to relaunch on October 31.
READ MORE: Uber vying to get back on Vancouver roads
“I don’t want to speculate, but obviously there is a lot of excitement, and we always look to surprise and delight,” said Uber Canada general manager Jeff Welsher on CKNW.
In response, Transportation Minister Todd Stone told reporters that Uber would face consequences for any entry without regulation.
“If Uber opts to proceed with the provision of a service and not…obtain the appropriate licenses that are required, then there are going to be significant consequences,” he said.
Uber is an app-driven ride share service that has become increasingly popular in major cities around the world. But they say Vancouver is the only market they’ve been forced to retreat from, due to heavy regulation in the taxi industry. However, in recent weeks they’ve been hiring employees in the area, despite a six-month moratorium placed on the taxi industry by municipal government.
“We would like to protect what is great about our current taxi industry, it provides accessible cabs, low-emission vehicles, criminal record checks that are signed off by the chief of police,” said Vancouver councillor Geoff Meggs.
“We impose those burdens on that industry, and as a result we have to make sure they have some protection.”
However, Meggs says that he isn’t surprised by the rumours of Uber preparing to make their move.
“I wondered if they would do that before the civic election, and it seems like they will.”
And he has a theory as to how Uber might circumvent regulation in the short-term.
“What they’ve done as a marketing tactic in some places is start without collecting a fare. If you don’t collect a fare, you’re not a taxi, you’re just collecting a ride.”
– With files from Leigh Kjekstad
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