Chinese Rideshare Company Has Been Secretly—and Illegally—Operating in Vancouver
A rideshare company is operating in a Canadian city without a license.
Founded in China, Udi Kuaiche launched in Vancouver—a city where services like Uber remain banned—four months ago, and according to a company spokesperson has been giving rides to hundreds of customers daily.
The City of Richmond, which borders Vancouver and has a high Asian population, has started investigating Udi Kuaiche following a complaint filed by a resident.
“We have been investigating,” Richmond spokesperson Ted Townsend informed Metro News. “They are operating in violation of our business license bylaw.”
Udi Kuaiche allows users to hail rides via WeChat, a Chinese instant messaging app for mobile platforms.
In BC, drivers who don’t have the correct license can be fined more than $1,000 for picking up a passenger.
Under the BC Liberals, the province was set to allow Uber and other ridesharing services to begin operating by the end of 2017. But the new NDP government has not offered a timeline.
