“Your ride has arrived” is a phrase that some people have been hoping to hear, especially those who’ve moved to New Brunswick from bigger cities.
Ride-hailing apps, like Uber or Lyft, have long been available in places like Halifax and Toronto. And now, you can add Fredericton to that list.
After years of trying, Uride, a ride-hailing app founded in Thunder Bay, Ont., will be making its debut in the province.
“It was a journey. It took a lot of help from a lot of different people. We wanted to launch in New Brunswick, you know, like a long time ago,” said Cody Ruberto, the co-founder and CEO of the company.
Ride-hailing, sometimes also called ride-sharing, refers to a service where a ride is booked through a phone app, payment is made through the app, and a driver picks up the passenger in his own vehicle.
In 2020, the provincial government enacted legislation that would allow for the introduction of ride-hailing businesses in New Brunswick.
But local municipalities also needed to pass bylaws allowing ride-hailing, something Fredericton did in April 2021.
The City of Fredericton said in a statement that Uride has been licensed in accordance with the bylaw, but that the city has no role to play with regard to drivers, vehicles, licensing and insurance.
In November 2021, Uride announced its intentions to enter the Fredericton market. But an issue with insurance meant that drivers wouldn’t be covered between the time they turned on the app to when they picked up a customer.
Ruberto said that problem has now been resolved.
The New Brunswick Financial and Consumer Services Commission said in an emailed statement that the Superintendent of Insurance had approved a policy for ride-sharing companies, but at that time, it only allowed the ride-sharing company’s insurance policy to cover any valid claims arising after the driver accepts a request, or when the passengers are in the vehicle.
“But when the driver was waiting for a request, the driver’s personal automobile insurance would have to cover any valid claims arising from an accident,” the statement said.
“Since that time, the Superintendent of Insurance approved non-standard policy allowing the period while the driver is waiting for a request for a ride to be covered by the ride-sharing company’s insurer.”
With the launch of the app in Fredericton planned for Friday afternoon, Ruberto said there are “dozens” of drivers signed up and ready to go for the Halloween weekend. He said they are also working on hiring more.
Expecting high demand
Ruberto said he spent time in Fredericton over the last few years talking to students about the need for a service like this.
“There’s a huge transportation problem that needs to be fixed. Sometimes the wait times people have currently is kind of crazy. So I expect demand to be really high,” he said.
He said the company is also currently recruiting drivers in Moncton and Saint John to bring the service there as well.
Izzeldeen Adualshar said he has heard about Uride coming to Fredericton from ads on social media.
“I’m actually pretty excited for it to come here,” he said. “Sometimes you do need to get to class very quick.”
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Ruberto said a big motivation for starting the company was having an easy way for people to get home safe.
“In Thunder Bay, in my town, people used to wait over an hour to get a ride on the weekends. If it was a holiday, you can wait three to four hours to get a cab,” said Ruberto.
“And a problem that existed for, you know, 20-30 years doesn’t really exist anymore. So we’re going to do everything we possibly can to make the same kind of difference in Fredericton.”
This story was originally published in CBC News on Oct. 27, 2023.
Hannah Rudderham Portfolio 