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Boston City Council Considers New Regulations For Ride-Sharing Companies
ResumeThe Boston City Council is considering regulating popular ride-sharing companies like Lyft and Uber, which operate in the city.
Those companies are not regulated at the moment, but taxi drivers have long been urging that the city do so.
Dozens of taxi drivers gathered in front of City Hall Monday afternoon to push for new rules.
"I do not want any uberX over here stealing our jobs," said Malik Abbas, a protesting taxi drivers who wants Uber banned. "I cannot afford to pay my taxi mortgage. I cannot. I cannot afford to pay my rent."
Supporters of the ride-sharing services were also at City Hall.
"We are pro-regulation," said Uber spokesman Taylor Bennett. "We want to have a structure that embraces ride-sharing as an alternative for Bostonians here."
Guests
Curt Nickisch, WBUR's business and technology reporter. He tweets @CurtNickisch.
Tom LeCompte, taxi driver and contributor to WBUR's Cognoscenti.
More
Cognoscenti: Taxis, Uber And The Stakes For Right Of Way
- "In order to get my hack license, I had to go to the Boston Police Department, pay a fee, go to a week’s worth of classes at the police academy in Hyde Park, take a test covering subjects of taxi regulations, traffic laws and basic knowledge of the city, and then go back to the police department and pay another fee for my license (renewable each year for another fee)."
Radio Boston: For Uber, Cambridge Seeks Smart 21st Century Regulation
- "'Uber is operating illegally in Massachusetts under current state statutes for motor vehicle registration and operation. Any vehicle for hire must be registered as a limo, and any private cars cannot be used for passenger-for-hire service.'"
This segment aired on December 1, 2014.