Uber, Lyft hail proposed state Senate rules
Taxi cos. vow to fight
Uber and Lyft are applauding the Senate's proposed regulations for ridehailing app services, but taxi advocates and City Hall are vowing to fight the bill they say would decimate the cab industry.
“The Senate proposal is a significant step forward for innovation and growth, with strong support for improved transportation options and economic opportunities,” said Uber spokeswoman Carlie Waibel.
“This is a bill that provides the right amount of oversight and regulation while also allowing Uber and Lyft to continue to thrive, and I think that's what a majority of residents want,” said state Sen. James Eldridge, who was involved in writing the bill.
But Scott Solombrino, a spokesman for Ride Safe MA, a group of taxi and livery companies advocating for strict regulations on Uber and Lyft, said, “We're going to work the floor as hard as we possibly can, we're going to work the Legislature to make sure we get our message out. You would see the taxi industry collapse, you would see thousands of medallion owners unable to repay their payments.”
Solombrino said his organization takes issue with nearly every aspect of the bill released yesterday, including what it says are insufficient background checks and the lack of a ban on some UberX and Lyft pickups at Logan International Airport and the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center that was included in a House of Representatives bill passed in March.
Mayor Martin J. Walsh's office also said City Hall will push for amendments, but did not specify any changes. The bill would explicitly ban cities and towns from implementing their own background checks. The bill is expected to hit the Senate floor on Wednesday, and then would likely go to a conference committee for the House and Senate to try to reach a compromise bill.