KABU-Ride Inc. was granted a ride-hailing license by the Passenger Transportation Board, which is great news for the Richmond-headquartered tech company.
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.
KABU is partnering with other major Canadian firms in an effort to reduce the cost of maintenance and operations of vehicles that drivers are using every day to help make ends meet.
Whether it’s the cost of gas, repairs, and maintenance, keeping their vehicles tidy and clean, or the cost of a cellular data plan and hardware, KABU is cognizant of the fact these are all significant costs that drivers bear to work in the gig economy.
We look forward to announcing news of our partnerships in the coming days.