An expansion of the controversial Uber ride sharing service is getting a rough reception in Vancouver, B.C. As might be expected, the Taxi industry is leading the charge.
Based on my knowledge of the way things work here (having lived here all my life), I'll be surprised if this ever gets off the ground in B.C. Whether or not the Mayor of Vancouver has "productive discussions" with Uber doesn't matter in the least, as that sort of industry falls under Provincial motor vehicle branch regulations, and the Minister has already gone on record as stating they will be vigorously prosecuted.
Things are heavily regulated here and I can foresee a few pitfalls in areas such as....
- Carrying passengers for a fee requires a Class 4 license. Those with a Class 5 will be acting against the law. For example....
"3) A chauffeur, within a municipality that has passed a bylaw under subsection (11), must not drive, operate or be in charge of a motor vehicle carrying passengers for hire unless he or she holds a permit for that purpose issued to him or her by the chief of police of the municipality."
"37 (1) A person must not hire or engage another person to drive or operate a motor vehicle where this Act requires the driver to be licensed, unless the person hired or engaged holds a driver's licence under this Act of a class that entitles him or her to drive and operate that motor vehicle."
However, ICBC does have a category for Uber but drivers which don't meet these requirements will run afoul of the law, and could ultimately have their vehicle seized. There will be a cost (possibly substantial) for potential Uber drivers to be "legal" with the proper licenses.
- If (heaven forbid) an M.V.I. occurs involving a vehicle that isn't properly licensed and the passenger is injured, ICBC could sue the driver / vehicle owner right into bankruptcy.
- Carrying passengers for hire is technically a Taxi, and therefore a Taxi license would be required. The Taxi industry pays a fortune in licensing and other regulatory fees, and they're not going to let this pass without a fight! I suspect there will be injunctions or other legal consequences very quickly if Uber sets up shop here.
- There are no background checks or regulation of drivers, so a criminal offence could be committed against the passenger, such as in THIS case (the woman thought she was flagging down a Cab). That's a "worst case scenario", but you never know....
On a related note, according to a news report I saw yesterday, the hotel industry and government authorities are lining up to take a shot at AirBnB. As AirBnB doesn't pay taxes as a "lodging provider", one government authority estimated that they had lost about $37 million in taxes. THIS incident may be one of many disputes against AirBnB.
Interesting times we live in.....