City of Delta says it's "ready for ride-hailing"

While the provincial government has not yet announced an official date as to when ride-hailing services will begin in BC, the City of Delta said it has put a “simple, clear, and transparent process in place to ensure ride-hailing companies will be able to operate as soon as they are ready.”

In a statement, Delta Mayor George Harvie said the city has “established a simple and reasonable business licensing system for ride-hailing to ensure that we are treating ride-hailing companies and taxis fairly while allowing our residents to access improved transportation services.”

Ride-hailing companies wanting to operate in Delta will be required to pay a base annual business licence fee of $110 plus $25 per car with a cap per company of $1,500. The city said these fees are consistent with the business licence fees paid by taxis that operate in Delta.

The city also said its ride-hailing fees are the “lowest announced fees in the region.”

Calling its strategy an “interim approach,” the city said the goal is to “allow for ride-hailing companies to operate in the community while Delta continues working with its regional counterparts to establish an inter-municipal licensing system.”

Once that inter-municipal licensing system is established, “Delta-specific fees” would no longer be charged.

We look forward to ride-hailing companies operating in Delta as soon as the Province allows them to,” said Harvie.

With its announcement, Delta is the latest Lower Mainland municipality to officially endorse and welcome ride-hailing operators such as Uber and Lyft.

Last week, the City of Vancouver said it was also officially ready to welcome ride-hailing to its streets.

“I’m looking forward to Vancouver welcoming ride-hailing in a way that minimizes its impact on traffic congestion, particularly in Vancouver’s metro core,” Vancouver Mayor Kennedy Stewart said.