B.C. Green Party leader Andrew Weaver says the “spirit” of his private members’ ridesharing bill is heading to legislative committee.
“The committee will be tasked with putting forward a report of recommendations that will be used by government and legislative drafters, to draft policy to bring forward ridesharing in 2018.”
Weaver says the committee’s report on regulations will be done in February, along with a report on the taxi industry by expert Dan Hara requested by the NDP government.
The committee is looking at ridesharing which Weaver says is not part of Hara’s terms of reference.
He says you can’t talk about modernizing the taxi industry without actually talking about the introduction of enabling technologies and regulations.
Having both pieces of the puzzle complete at the same time, he says, could potentially speed up implementation.
“The government sets the agenda as to what bills come forward when. We will pressure them to try to do it in the spring session, at worst-case, we will see it in the fall next year.”
Weaver introduced this ridesharing bill twice before this session but this is the first time an opposition private member’s’ bill has made it to committee.
At the end of the day though, Weaver says this will end up as a government bill, not his.
Weaver says what’s important is that the province will finally be in line with other major cities around the world already enjoying ridesharing.
During the election last spring, the NDP said B.C. would see ridesharing in place before the end of the year, but in October the Horgan government announced the next step would by the Hara taxi industry report.