http://www.kansascity.com/news/local/article1181506.html
Lyft finds itself in legal limbo, though its drivers continue to pick up riders
08/08/2014 9:12 PM
08/08/2014 10:28 PM
Vince Weston, a Kansas City area driver for ride-sharing service Lyft, says he is confident the company will be able to come to an agreement to end its trouble with the city. The firm faces a mid-September courtroom showdown with officials who believe it is breaking the law.ALLISON LONG/THE
Keith Curington pulls up to the curb, his black Lincoln idling out in front of the Sprint Center.
Thirty minutes earlier, the 47-year-old Kansas Citian had been at home, paying bills in his River Market home. Now, thanks to the mobile capabilities of Lyft, he has made his way to the Power & Light District, welcoming a waiting stranger into the passenger seat for a lift across town.
A big, easygoing man, Curington teaches music at Park Hill High School. He joined Lyft as a driver about two months ago as a way to make some extra money during summer break, and as he weaves his way through downtown, he explains that the job has proved even more lucrative than he had hoped.
“It’s paid for some vacations,” he says.
At the moment, though, Curington’s long-term driving job — and the status of the company that employs him — rests in a sort of legal limbo in Kansas City.
A federal judge ruled last month against the city’s effort to place a temporary restraining order on the mobile ride-sharing company. But the city also has indicated that it will continue to enforce the law, which it believes Lyft is violating. A courtroom showdown is scheduled for Sept. 17.
Lyft drivers who The Star rode with this week weren’t preoccupied with the company’s ongoing negotiations with the city.
But the local situation serves as a kind of microcosm of the nationwide dilemma that Lyft presents, as cities across the country attempt to figure out what, exactly, to make of its emerging business model.
So far, the answers they’ve come up with have spanned the board.
In New York City, officials last month welcomed Lyft, with the caveat that its drivers must be licensed by the Taxi & Limousine Commission and be subject to a variety of regulations, including regular drug tests and vehicle inspections. Cities like Seattle, Houston and Milwaukee also have paved the way for Lyft’s arrival, while Memphis, Tenn.; Jacksonville, Fla.; and the states of Pennsylvania and New Mexico have taken steps to prevent the company from operating.
Even within the same state, officials can’t seem to reach any real agreement: As part of its agreement to begin service in New York City, Lyft also said it would be suspending service in both Buffalo and Rochester effective Aug. 1.
And in Missouri, just down Interstate 70 from Kansas City, a St. Louis judge ruled that the company couldn’t operate in the city until a hearing scheduled for Aug. 25 to determine whether to enact a permanent ban.
At the heart of the conversation is determining what Lyft is.
In Kansas City, officials are holding tight to their view that if Lyft can meet a handful of regulations — among them, that drivers are properly insured, that they undergo background checks and that they possess a valid driver’s license — the city would welcome its mustachioed fleet with open arms.
“We will be happy to welcome Lyft to the marketplace as long as they follow a few simple rules about getting licenses and permits to help protect public safety,” said city spokesman Chris Hernandez.
Another ride-sharing service, Uber, has worked with the city since its arrival, Hernandez said.
Lyft, which currently has tens of thousands of drivers in more than 65 U.S. cities, has long argued that it is merely a “ride-sharing” service not subject to the same regulations as more traditional operations. Its drivers are not professional drivers, the company insists, but people using their own personal vehicles to ferry individuals around town in their free time.
“Any regulations have to recognize that difference,” Lyft spokeswoman Chelsea Wilson said, explaining that all Lyft drivers are already subject to a background check and also are provided with $1 million commercial liability insurance while toting passengers. “There are ways to craft regulations that prioritize public safety and consumer choice while still allowing innovate industries like ride-share to operate.”
Bill George, president of the Kansas City Transportation Group, has disagreed ever since Lyft’s arrival in Kansas City. He takes exception to the company’s assertion that its services differ in any significant way from those provided by the city’s taxi or limo companies, some of which also offer smartphone applications.
The term “ride-sharing,” George says, is disingenuous — “Ride-sharing is two people carpooling together” — and he likens the Lyft situation to a construction company strolling into town and refusing to obtain building permits.
“It’s very simple: The rules either apply to all of us or apply to none of us,” George said. “And it’s disingenuous for Lyft to say they’re doing anything other than (what we’re doing). They’re providing transportation for hire, and the city either needs to say, ‘Comply with the rules,’ or do away with the rules.
“We’re fine either way,” he added.
No comments:
Post a Comment