Uber Finally Coming to BC This Year, Province Announces

Uber is finally coming to BC—again. The province today announced that ride-hailing services will be allowed to operate in Vancouver this year.

Todd Stone, minister of transportation and infrastructure, stated the obvious today when he said that there was demand in BC for taxi alternatives like Uber and Lyft.

Certain measures will be implemented to ensure a “level playing field,” he added, including giving taxis certain exclusive rights and investing millions of dollars in technology for taxis. Even so, the Vancouver Taxi Association managed to call the decision unfair.

Uber tried to launch in Vancouver years ago, but was forced to leave after the city immediately imposed prohibitive restrictions on its operations. Since then, Vancouver has proven one of the most challenging cities Uber has encountered, despite locals clamoring for the service to be available in BC.

The silver lining comes during a gloomy period for Uber. The company has been under scrutiny for months for a wide variety of controversies.