Kamloops could have ride-sharing service on the roads sometime this summer if all goes to plan for a private company.
Business license inspector Dave Jones says he spoke last month to operators of Lucky to Go, who have indicated a strong interest to coming here.
Jones says their extension outside of the Lower Mainland is on hold, based on the situation with COVID-19.
“Right now, the service levels for cabbies and everything are way down anyhow. So they’re not going to come in, invest a bunch of money, and then have no business. But I’m guessing it depends on what happens with COVID-19. July or August, probably,” Jones says.
Province-wide, the Passenger Transportation Board has now approved 14 ride-hailing applications and refused 18 others.
A number of ride-hailing companies are now hiring in the Kamloops area according to job boards, including Kabu Ride, URide.
The only ride-sharing companies with licenses in Kamloops to date are Lucky to Go, Kabu Ride, Safe Ride and Ripe Holdings.
Editor’s Note: This story stated that Lyft was looking to hire employees in Kamloops, but the company has since said that is not the case. The story has been modified to reflect this change.