Toronto, Ontario — Listen up for this weekly stock report! This week, a Quebec-based convenience giant teases plans to grow bigger, while a new rideshare service tests the waters in smaller B.C. cities.
Charge with Couche-Tard
Alimentation Couche-Tard said it has deployed “hundreds” of electric vehicle chargers available at 200+ North American locations over the next two years.
The Quebec-based convenience store retailer said the first fast charger was activated in late May at a new prototype Circle K store in Rock Hill, South Carolina.
The company said it will use the Rock Hill site to “better understand” its customers’ needs, track driver usage and evaluate impacts on in-store traffic. The company already operates a network of 1,000 chargers at more than 230 Circle K stores in Norway, Sweden and Denmark.
Network expansion in the U.S. and Canada will be in areas with strong EV adoption and available electric delivery infrastructure.
Uride, I ride, we ride
Some cities in B.C.’s interior and on Vancouver Island will soon have access to a new ride-hailing service: Uride.
Founded in 2017 in Ontario, Uride has served customers in smaller communities including Thunder Bay, Sudbury and Peterborough. Uride kickstarted in Kelowna, its first B.C. market, in early May, providing an alternative ride-hailing service to the city’s other option, Lucky to Go, which first launched in June 2020.
Approved by the province last January, Uride attempts to attract drivers by offering part-timers a $1,000 signing bonus and full-time drivers a weekly guaranteed pay of $1,500. It also provides a $300 referral bonus.
