$9 fare hike for taxi trips from YVR Airport to downtown Vancouver

Vancouver Airport Authority | Google Maps

The fixed, zone-based cost for inbound taxi trips from Sea Island — leaving Vancouver International Airport (YVR) — to select areas of Metro Vancouver has been increased.

This coincides with the 10th anniversary of the implementation of such a zone-based fare for inbound trips made from YVR to destinations within Vancouver and Richmond, targeting passengers arriving at the airport. This replaced the previous metered-based taxi rates for the areas.

The changes went into effect on October 11, 2024, which includes changes to the fare boundaries from their consolidation. Previously, there were 17 different zones, and following some consolidation within Vancouver and new clear divisions within Richmond, these zones have resulted in a net gain of two zones for a new total of 19.

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The October 2024 changes include consolidating zones within the downtown Vancouver peninsula and Downtown Eastside and creating a new separate zone for False Creek South and Central Broadway.

All zones saw a fare increase of between $3 and $9, with the steepest increase seen in downtown Vancouver’s West End, most of the Central Business District, and North False Creek areas. Under the previous zone boundaries, these areas had a fare of $37, but it is now $46, reflecting a $9 increase.

For taxi trips to reach northern areas of the downtown Vancouver peninsula — Canada Place cruise ship terminal, Gastown, and Coal Harbour — the increase is lower at $5. These areas were previously a separate zone before this month’s consolidation.

The next biggest hike is Central Richmond, which includes Richmond City Centre, where the fare has increased by $8 from $23 to $31.

The third highest increase is the zone for South Richmond and Steveston, where the fare increased from $29 to $35, representing a $6 increase.

The most expensive fare is for Northeast Vancouver (Hastings-Sunrise and Grandview-Woodland neighbourhoods), where the fare went up from $47 to $51, which is the only zone with a fare that goes over the $50 mark.

October 2024 fares and zone boundaries:

vancouver international airport yvr taxi cab zone map fares 2024

Current taxi zones and fixed fares for trips made from Vancouver International Airport (YVR) to Vancouver and Richmond, as of October 2024. (Vancouver Airport Authority)

Previous fares and zone boundaries, as of October 2023:

vancouver international yvr taxi cab fares zone map october 2023

Previous taxi zones and fixed fares for trips made from Vancouver International Airport (YVR) to Vancouver and Richmond, as of October 2023. (Vancouver Airport Authority)

Original fares and zone boundaries, as of 2014:

Original (2014) taxi flat rates and zones for trips from Vancouver International Airport to Vancouver and Richmond. (Vancouver Airport Authority)

This is not the first change to YVR’s zone boundaries and fixed fare rates since the system was first introduced in 2014.

It should be emphasized that these fixed rates do not apply to inbound trips to YVR for departures, and there are no fixed, zone-based rates in other areas of the region outside Vancouver and Richmond.

More broadly, taxis are overwhelmingly in direct competition with ride-hailing services such as Uber and Lyft, which have taken a significant chunk of the point-to-point transportation service demand ever since they were first approved to launch in early 2020.

Similarly, TransLink applies a $5 add-fare onto the regular fare on SkyTrain Canada Line’s inbound-only trips outside Sea Island towards Waterfront Station in downtown Vancouver.

Early in 2024, Vancouver Airport Authority shared that the volume of ride-hailing trips at YVR has increased by 50% over the previous 18-month period, which also corresponds to a rapid resurgence in the airport’s passenger volumes. Furthermore, over 20% of the airport’s passengers use the Canada Line SkyTrain.

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