Claire Trevena, Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure, has issued the following statement in response to the Mayors’ Council endorsement of an inter-municipal business licence (IMBL) for ride hailing:

“I would like to thank the Mayors’ Council and the TransLink Working Group for its progress in encouraging municipalities to adopt an IMBL for ride-hail companies.

“This framework will streamline the business licence application process – eliminating a patchwork system across the Lower Mainland, allowing pickup and drop-off between participating municipalities. This will make it simple for Region 1 and Metro Vancouver municipalities to issue business licences to ride-hailing companies.

“Yesterday, I shared that our government has been working with ICBC and the taxi industry to create a new insurance product for taxi drivers. This product will be based on the per-kilometre distance travelled and will be more affordable for the industry overall. 

“The independent Passenger Transportation Board is responsible for supply caps. The board has confirmed that it will monitor ride-hailing performance data and has stated that, as information becomes available, fleet size may be reassessed.

“Our government continues to work to support accessible transportation options with a fee of 30 cents for every trip in a ride-hail vehicle. We are working with industry and stakeholders as fees are collected on how to best allocate these funds.

“We will continue working to ensure the system works, prioritizes safety and is fair for ride hailing, the taxi industry and all road users.”