L.A. Taxi Drivers Protest Lyft, Other Ride-Sharing Services

by City News Service

Ride-shares arranged by companies such as Lyft -- known for sending out vehicles with furry, pink mustaches affixed to the front grill -- Uber and Sidecar have grown in popularity around the country, but members of the taxi- cab industry contend the businesses have skirted required background checks and inspections.

Lyft launched on the Westside in February. The pink-mustached vehicles can be seen throughout Venice, Santa Monica and West L.A.

"These rogue taxis are bypassing all safety regulations created to protect riders and drivers," said William Rouse, general manager of Los Angeles Yellow Cab. "Not only are these high-tech bandit cabs unsafe, they are breaking regulatory standards and disenfranchising safe, legal taxi drivers."

The Los Angeles Department of Transportation issued "cease and desist" letters to the companies on Monday, and the City Council's Transportation Committee tomorrow will consider a motion to begin creating regulations for such businesses.

According to the motion introduced by City Councilman Bill Rosendahl, "passengers are using these services with no assurance that drivers are licensed and insured or that the vehicles are inspected and safe."

The motion adds the city should begin crafting regulations of its own as it waits for the California Public Utilities Commission to work out ways of deal with these "New Online-Enabled Transportation Services."

People participate in the ride-share services as either drivers or passengers, with some signing up to provide rides for a fee, while others request rides through the apps. The companies often get a cut of the fees paid to drivers.

Representatives of Lyft and Uber said they do follow regulations, just not the city's, which only has jurisdiction over taxis. They have an agreement with the California Public Utilities Commission to operate and must also submit to background checks and requirements.

Rouse charged that the service provided by phone application-driven companies "boils down to electronic hitchhiking," with all of the uncertainties that come with hailing a stranger for a ride.

"There's 90 years of taxicab regulations. A lot of those regulations were created because people got hurt," he said. "You don't have to learn those lessons again to know the regulations are right."

He also argued that the "metered" companies fit the city's definition of a taxicab and charge fares in the same way.

Lyft's co-founder, John Zimmer, said his company reached an agreement with the PUC to "operate legally throughout California," after hitting upon similar resistance from taxicab companies and municipal departments when Lyft launched in San Francisco.

His and other similar firms are not defined as taxi companies, Zimmer said, and would not need to follow the city's regulations. Lyft calls the payments its drivers receive "donations."

Zimmer added Lyft already follows regulations under the state agreement. The company pays for $1 million "per-occurrence excess liability insurance," and its "community drivers" must submit to criminal background and DMV record checks, he said.

The drivers are additionally screened "in-person" and their vehicles inspected, he said, and Lyft also has a "zero-tolerance" policy for drugs and alcohol. Both passengers and drivers are rated on a 5-star system.

"Lyft's hundreds of thousands of community members are changing the way people get around, and making city life more affordable, friendly and efficient," Zimmer said. "As with innovations and movements before us, there will often be challenges and hurdles along the way."

Uber and its "eco-friendly" offshoot, uberX, also have an agreement with the PUC to operate statewide, said company spokesman Andrew Noyes, who added the company does not charge on a meter system.

"The PUC set forth a stringent list of requirements in the settlement agreement, and we have complied with them," Noyes said.

The city regulates taxis, while the state commission's jurisdiction is over limousines and charter buses, he said.

The city's taxicab administrator, Thomas M. Drischler, sent letters dated Monday to Lyft, Sidecar and Uber telling each firm to cease and desist "due to the fact that your company has no permits or license to transport passengers for hire."

"This notice to cease illegal operations shall remain in effect until such time as your vehicles and drivers are properly permitted," he wrote.

Rosendahl's motion will to be taken up by the Transportation Committee on Wednesday.

The motion states that the city should begin crafting regulation of its own while waiting for the PUC to work out ways of deal with "New Online- Enabled Transportation Services."

The trendy, phone app ride-share services have popped up in other major U.S. cities, including San Francisco, Seattle, Chicago and New York, where they have similarly shaken up the taxi industry and local policymakers.

The New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission earlier this year began testing a licensing program geared toward such services.

Zimmer said his team has met with outgoing Mayor Antonio Villaragiosa and Mayor-elect Eric Garcetti, who both "recognize the value of our community" and want to "work supportively with us moving forward to address the DOT's concerns."

What are your thoughts? Have you used Lyft, Uber or another ride-sharing service over a taxi, and if so, why?