Revelstokians may have more choice for a safe ride this next winter, as a B.C. rideshare company with years of success in other small towns sets its sights on a new market in the Interior.
Coastal Rides, self-described as the Sunshine Coast's first ride-hailing service, has since its 2020 debut expanded from founder Ryan Staley's home of Sechelt, to the Comox Valley, Tofino and Ucluelet, Campbell River, Port Alberni and Fort St. John.
In his next move, Staley's hoping to have drivers delivering passengers around all corners of Revelstoke by this next winter, filling a hole he feels the city's taxi and shuttle service are missing.
"We do see that as a bit of a gap," he said. "We found that they're probably not keeping up with the demand that's there already."
While not affiliated with Uber, Coastal Rides has taken a similar approach to the rideshare industry, including launching its own smartphone app and ride review system. Drivers can't be hailed from the street or paid in cash. The company's latest development is an artificial intelligence-powered voice interface for ordering rides, which it'll roll out soon.
As Coastal Rides works to update its Transportation Network Service agreement with the province so it can expand operations anywhere in B.C., Staley said he picked Revelstoke as an initial expansion market because of a good friend who lives there.
John Leonard, who's worked as a Coastal Rides driver for two-and-a-half years, intends to help run the service in Revelstoke when he's not vacationing during winter.
"It's the perfect thing for ski bummers," he said, referring to the side hustle it'll offer people working at the resort or in the backcountry. "It's a totally reliable, customer-friendly service."
Along with the dependability of rideshare services picking up and dropping off customers on time, Leonard said it's great to be able to support a B.C.-born company.
He anticipates peak rider hours for Revelstoke will be around dinnertime, and said it'll be most important to get drivers filling in daytime hours. Staley added that scheduling for drivers will be flexible, and may mimic communities such as Tofino that stop service between about 2 and 8 a.m.
Though "the summer will be an OK season for Coastal Rides," Leonard said, "in the winter it's just going to be gangbusters," with two or three drivers likely working any given night.
"We'd start with even two or three," Staley added, looking ahead to the ski season. "There's probably going to be times where you don't need more than one. But then there's going to be times where you need 10."
While drivers won't be compensated outside their share of ride earnings to cover costs such as fuel and maintenance, Leonard emphasized rideshare quality is often higher when drivers invest in their vehicles themselves. Plus, spending $14 or $15 out of pocket for 100 kilometres of gas goes a long way for a community the size of Revelstoke. Staley added Coastal Rides can potentially help cover expenses such as commercial vehicle costs, though on a case-by-case basis.
"We don't have billions of dollars in venture capital to throw around," he reasoned.
All said and done, drivers employed anywhere by Coastal Rides take away 73 per cent of rider payments. Even for part-time drivers, Staley expects them to make at least $500 per night.
"I worked in the ski industry for years," he said, where he recognizes "everyone's got a second job."
Though he'll continue to operate Coastal Rides from the Sunshine Coast, Staley is no stranger to Revelstoke 香蕉视频直播� he remembers cat skiing on Mount Mackenzie not long before Revelstoke Mountain Resort launched in 2007 香蕉视频直播� and spent five years working on the slopes of Banff and Lake Louise.
Revelstokians with a Class 4 driver's licence and vehicle no older than 10 years are encouraged to reach out to Coastal Rides ahead of the next ski season.
For anyone wanting to get involved who doesn't own a vehicle, Leonard said both he and Staley will have extra sets of wheels available for drivers.
"This needs very little infrastructure to make it run well," Leonard remarked. "It's like what's been happening out on the coast 香蕉视频直播� it just keeps building."
He said his next step to support Staley's expansion will be approaching major hotels in Revelstoke about getting guests utilizing this incoming rideshare service as winter hits.
Prospective drivers can email about future employment.
