Hailing a ride to go around in circles

One bill illustrates the unusual way business is done by a minority government in a three-party legislature where grudges from the past are still top of mind.

Its progress through the just-concluded legislative session was a bit of a departure from the norm. It purports to address the Shame of the Pacific — Vancouver is the only major city in North America without (legal) ridehailing.

Bill 55 — the Passenger Transportation Amendment Act — arrived in the house carrying enough political baggage to fill a few party buses. It’s an attempt to cautiously introduce disruptive new technology while minimizing the disruption in the politically significant taxi industry as much as possible.

Squaring that circle frightened off the previous B.C. Liberal government for several years before it finally took a shot in its last few months in office. When it lost power, that effort collapsed.

When the NDP took power, it took its own sweet time grappling with the no-win problem, ordering up re-thinks and studies, before finally introducing the bill Nov. 19.

It’s such a complicated piece of work that it will take at least a year before people can start calling up rides on their phones. That will be at least two years past the date all parties promised in the last election campaign.

B.C. Liberals — their record clear of any legislative progress on the issue — condemned it from the start, with Leader Andrew Wilkinson saying it will obstruct ride-hailing, not encourage it.

They also wallowed in the shame of being so far behind hip, “lit” places like Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Syria and — oh, the ignominy! — North Battleford, Sask.

The Greens, meanwhile, played it cagey. Ride-hailing is Leader Andrew Weaver’s pet project. So they want it done, but they want it done a lot faster than Transportation Minister Claire Trevena’s schedule. They demanded in question period that she speed it up.

There was a startling moment when Trevena was asked by the Liberals if the bill represented a confidence vote for the NDPGreen arrangement.

“We are actually checking for extra advice on that one,” she said.

No matter, because the Greens later lined up in favour. But not before an unusual moment. The Liberals this week introduced their own ride-hailing bill to correct all the deficiencies they claim are in the government one.

Opposition bills never go anywhere without some prior dealmaking. But this one passed first reading 44-41, despite the NDP government being opposed.

And the count shows that Greens Adam Olsen and Sonia Fursteneau sided with the Liberals on the formality, while their leader joined the NDP in the failed attempt to kill it on the spot.

Caucus revolt? No. The Greens brushed it off. It was just a spur-of-the-moment reaction to the short-notice bill.

Weaver was fuming at Liberal game-playing and voted no out of frustration. His two colleagues just shrugged, knew the vote didn’t really matter, so let it pass.

The Greens reunited later and claimed a minor victory. They got an amendment passed that makes the new regime marginally more flexible.

Just to round out the process, the whole issue is being handed back for another go-round to a legislative committee. It already reported once, but now it’s tasked with going over assorted issues again, with a new wrinkle.

It originally said drivers for ride-hailing firms could have regular Class 5 driver’s licences; there was no need for the slightly higher Class 4 requirements.

Trevena ignored that advice and went with Class 4, out of safety concerns. Now the committee has to look at the Class 4/Class 5 issue again.

That left the Liberals “speechless,” which isn’t a bad thing, considering the amount of verbiage spent on this issue so far.

So the Opposition spent several days roasting a bill that doesn’t go far enough, even though it goes further than they ever did.

The government is tip-toeing toward introducing a popular new service, years behind schedule, and asking a committee to reconsider something the government has already ignored. And the Greens have split and voted — nominally, at least — for both Liberal and NDP ride-hailing bills.

And to think ride-hailing was supposed to make life simpler.

Les Leyne covers the B.C. Legislature for the Victoria Times Colonist.