Ridesharing reaches the end of the road in Florida county
Uber and Lyft shut down their popular ridesharing companies in Broward County, Fla., recently, after months of dissenting county officials mounted regulations on the companies and its drivers.
The two app-based companies said the county’s “outdated” regulations became too burdensome, according to the Sun Sentinel.
"The regulations place an unnecessary and substantial burden on Uber and our driver-partners, making it impossible for Uber to continue providing the standard of service you have come to expect and demand," an Uber email sent out to its customers, reads.
In April, county commissioners passed the legislation that legalized ride-sharing services with the condition that drivers be fingerprinted and carry commercial vehicle insurance, according to CBS Miami. Both services conduct private criminal and driver background checks.
“As elected officials, we have to ensure that our residents are protected, ” County Commissioner Mark Kiar told the news station after the vote. “I want to make sure that someone who gets behind the car of an Uber vehicle is not going to assault a resident or a college kid or somebody that gets in the back.”
More than 2,000 Uber drivers had taken residents and visitors of Broward County on thousands of trips over the last year, Uber Spokesman Bill Gibbons told the Sentinel.
Some cities have protested the county decision with Dania Beach City Commissioner Chickie Brandimarte encouraging her constituents to “work around Broward County,” according to the newspaper.
"I'm going to fight for it like crazy," Brandimarte told the Sentinel. "I want it. I'm mad that our own representatives [on the county commission] voted against it."
Both services are still available in nearby Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties, according to CBS Miami.
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