Columnist Mike Smyth writes about the latest delay on ride-hailing in B.C.

It’s a double broken promise by John Horgan’s NDP government that’s inflicted a double-whammy on Vancouver’s economy and international reputation.

That’s the view of the city’s business leaders after the government broke its promise — again — to deliver ride-hailing services to Metro Vancouver.

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Horgan promised in last year’s election that Uber, Lyft and other ride-hailing services would be up and running by Christmas 2017. When that didn’t happen, the government told frustrated customers to wait until 2018.

Now, the New Democrats have kicked the can down the road again, saying ride-hailing won’t become a reality until fall 2019.

That’s two years and two broken promises. But it’s even worse when you read the fine print of last week’s news release, which said the government expects “applications” from ride-hailing companies to be filed by September 2019.

“It can take the Passenger Transportation Board six months to a year to approve an application,” said taxi-industry expert Benn Proctor. “So it could be 2020 by the time Uber and Lyft are potentially operating.”

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Or, considering this government’s barely disguised contempt for ride-hailing, it could take even longer than that. Or maybe it will never happen at all, judging by the restrictive operating rules outlined last week by Transportation Minister Claire Trevena.

The continuing delay means Vancouver has retained its dubious distinction of being the largest city in North America where ride-hailing services are still illegal. And that’s hurting the city’s international reputation and economy, said Iain Black, president of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade.

“This is an embarrassment,” Black said. “We’re an international city. We pride ourselves in the 120,000 people working in our high-tech sector. We have the film and television industry, wireless applications, video-game developers.

“But the people who come to town — investors and technologists — arrive at the airport and wait 45 minutes or an hour for a cab because they don’t have the ride-hailing services they’ve used for years in their own cities.

“It’s ridiculous.”

How bad an economic hit is Vancouver suffering? According to the Land Econ Group, a California-based economic consulting firm, Vancouver is losing over $100 million a year in potential income, spending and productivity savings because of the ride-hailing failure.

The board of trade office is near the Canada Place cruise-ship terminal, where visitors often stop Black on the street with an annoyingly familiar question.

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“They ask, ‘Why doesn’t my Uber work here?’ ” Black said.

“Each cruise ship brings $3 million a day into Vancouver’s economy. These people need to get around and have a positive impression of the place so they come back. Without that, it’s a negative impact throughout the economy.”

Trevena said she’s heard all that before.

“I understand people’s frustrations,” she said. “They wait for ages for a cab that may or may not come. They can see in other jurisdictions the availability of ride-share. People are desperate for these changes and we understand that as a government.”

So why does the government do nothing but delay, delay and delay some more?

Trevena said it’s because she wants to make sure ride-hailing rules are developed to ensure drivers are fully insured, their criminal records are checked and their vehicles are safe.

“People’s safety has to come first,” she said.

But critics say there’s no excuse to take years to develop a safe ride-hailing system already in place in every other major city on the continent. And, in a bitterly ironic twist, the delay is actually creating a public-safety hazard right now.

“You have more people late at night being refused taxi rides,” said Proctor. “That’s a public-safety issue, especially if people decide to drive after they’ve been drinking.”

Clouding the picture even more is the government’s latest insistence that Uber and Lyft will face “boundaries and supply” restrictions if they’re ever allowed to operate. That means the number of ride-hailing vehicles would be capped and face geographical limits on where they could pick up passengers.

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“We need to make sure we find that balance,” Trevena said. “In terms of supply, we need to ensure we have enough people on the road without creating absolute chaos.”

But that approach is completely contrary to the way Uber and Lyft operate in other cities, where the market dictates the number of ride-hailing drivers.

“The number adjusts to supply and demand in the marketplace from the consumer,” Proctor said.

And rather than create “absolute chaos” on the streets, ride-hailing in other cities has actually reduced traffic congestion because people discover they can get around without a car.

“Other jurisdictions have seen vehicle ownership go down and public-transit use go up,” Black said.

Why would transit use go up with ride-hailing? Because people could use SkyTrain to get to the station nearest their home and then an Uber vehicle to complete their journey, for example.

“It’s perfect,” Black said. “That is good for the economy in terms of congestion on the road.”

Those are all valid arguments for ride-hailing. Every other major city has figured it out. In B.C., the government’s obedience to the powerful taxi-industry lobby has betrayed the public.