Fraser Valley/Richmond – Back in February and befor the pandemic took hold, KABU-Ride Inc. was granted a ride-hailing license by the Passenger Transportation Board, which is great news for the Richmond-headquartered tech company.
The service area will include Metro Vancouer as well as Chilliwack, Abbotsford, Mission, Langley, Maple Ridge and Kamloops.
KABU-Ride Inc., a subsidiary of GOKABU Group, plans to begin operations once it has secured the necessary licenses and insurance policies to operate.
“I’m very happy we got the license and I want to thank the PTB for showing faith in our start-up company and its vision,” said GOKABU president Billy Xiong, who co-founded the firm in 2016 with CEO Austin Zhang. “We’ve been working really hard so that our drivers can get back on the road and start earning a living wage while serving our loyal customers.”
While he acknowledged this is a momentous day for the Canadian company, Xiong said obtaining the license is just the first hurdle to clear, and that there’s a lot of hard work ahead.
Customers who want to use KABU’s ride-hailing service will soon be able to download the newest version of the App from the App Store or from Google Play. The service will also be available through the Chinese social media platform WeChat.
Xiong said he’s proud that KABU-Ride will be the first ride-hailing company in Canada to enter into a true partnership with its independent drivers.
Drivers will receive subsidized health/dental/disability/illness coverage, he said, as well as a $250,000 Life Insurance Policy, which will provide some peace of mind for every driver’s family.
Drivers will get to retain more of their daily income, thanks to KABU-Ride’s industry-low commission rate.
