Ride hailing apps such as Uber and Lyft have been operating in the Lower Mainland and Whistler for many years, after many stops and starts and not without pushback and controversy.
BC's Passenger Transportation Board finally approved the operations in 2020, and as of May 28 of this year, the two ride hailing companies have been given the green light to expand across the province.
However, before this approval came, smaller cities and towns were left out of ride hailing options, so local companies started popping up, such as Coastal Rides. Founder Ryan Staley said he first had a glimmer of an idea to start a ride hailing app and company on one of his earlier visits to the Sunshine Coast.
"I remember missing the bus because the ferry was a few minutes late," said Staley, in an interview with the Peak. "I thought there had to be another solution here; there were only a few taxis and they couldn't keep up."
Staley said when regulations changed in BC for Lyft and Uber, he thought he could start something similar on the coast.
Anyone who tried to launch a business in early 2020 received a rude awakening with the incoming COVID-19 pandemic; many businesses shut down or slowed to a temporary halt.
"In Powell River, we started operating in 2020 and had a few drivers to start, but during the pandemic they paused operating," said Staley. "We have a couple of drivers now who regularly drive but are part-time."
Drivers in the qathet region act more like an on-demand service, where people book online in advance.
"There are a few issues operating in a more rural area," said Staley. "One of the challenges we've raised with the provincial government is the restriction around having to have a vehicle that's less than 10 years old."
He said this regulation has been an issue in many semi-rural places such as qathet.
"We had a driver on Texada [Island] for a couple years; he was the only kind of service like this there, and there's barely any bus service, certainly nothing else," said Staley. "Eventually his vehicle was too old and he could no longer operate it."
Staley said for folks like the driver on Texada, buying a new vehicle is not worthwhile, since working as a driver is more of a side-gig.
"One of the biggest challenges is getting more people on board, on the driver side," said Staley. "On the customer side, on the lower Sunshine Coast, there's a lot of times when there's not much going on."
The qathet region has its fair share of folks going out for dinner, or to an event where alcohol is involved, but some people still choose to drive after imbibing. However, Staley said in qathet, a wide variety of people have started using the ride hailing app: workers needing an early ride before the bus is operating; airport and ferry runs; people going to Lund; and folks running daily errands.
"The more reliable the service is, the more people will use it," said Staley. "We're operating in Sechelt, Gibsons and the whole lower Sunshine Coast, Courteney, Comox, Campbell River and Port Alberni."
There is no bus transportation outside of the summer months that connects Earls Cove to the lower Sunshine Coast. Staley said his company does pick people up at Earls Cove, but it's a long trip for the driver.
As for what Staley thinks about Uber and Lyft now being able to operate across BC?
"They're going to face the same sort of challenges with drivers," said Staley. "Technically, you could try to book a ride, but there is no one to drive."
One difference between Coastal Rides and the other global tech conglomerates is that Staley has hired staff, so the service is reliable.
"That's not something Uber is going to do; they don't hire people as staff," said Staley. "In terms of reliability, I think we'll probably continue to be more reliable than those kinds of services."
He said his company has become part of the community and that he wants to stay accountable to those communities where the company operates.
"I care about what happens, but for a large company, it's just about market share," said Staley. "For me, I saw something that was needed here and wanted to do something about it."
For more information, go to coastalrides.ca/about-us.
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