Burnaby to allow car-share vehicles to park throughout the city

Good news for car-share users in Burnaby: city council has approved new rules that will allow companies like Evo and Modo to park their cars anywhere in the municipality, free of charge, with no time limit — even in spaces with parking meters.

Currently, car-shares can only be parked at specific designated areas at Metrotown, Brentwood Town Centre, Simon Fraser University, and BCIT. They can’t be parked at any other locations in Burnaby.

City councillor Alison Gu says the changes will even allow car-share vehicles to park on streets for more than 24 hours in areas where those restrictions currently apply to other vehicles.

“The entirety of Burnaby will be covered,” Gu told CityNews. “And people can take a trip from Metrotown to a friend’s house in Burnaby Central or Burnaby North or anywhere else in the city.”

In order to qualify, the car-share company needs to have an agreement with the city to pay for the use of the metered parking spaces.

Gu says the new rules will help commuters reduce costs that come with owning a car, like paying for parking, gas, and insurance.

City councillor Daniel Tetrault says he is excited by the changes.

“We’ve had some bylaw changes we had to make that would make our city more welcoming to Evo in the business model,” Tetrault said.

One of the biggest changes, he says, is the plan to create a decal for car-share companies to display on each vehicle. These decals will cost $50 each.

Meanwhile, BCAA, which created and powers Evo, says it is “excited” about the decision.

“We already have a large membership who live or work in Burnaby, that are already using Evo, so we’re looking forward to offering locals more convenience when it comes to getting around,” the association said in a statement.

The new rules go into effect Jan. 1, 2024.