Uber has Returned to Broward County!
Uber is back in Broward County. The popular ride-booking app alerted customers it would be back in service at 8 a.m. today. Following a vote by the Broward County Commission Tuesday that dismantled some regulations for ride services like Uber, the company said it would begin operating again in the county as of today.
Uber, a ride-booking service that connects drivers to customers via a smart-phone app, pulled out of Broward on July 31 in protest over the county’s new regulations, which it called “onerous.” The Uber-loving public clobbered county commissioners in meetings and filled their email inboxes with hate mail. Business leaders denounced the county for running Uber off. Commissioners gave in Tuesday, dismantling its months-old law to peel off elements to which Uber objected. They said the public had spoken, and they were eager to settle one of the biggest fights County Hall has ever hosted.
Broward’s yearlong war between Uber and traditional cabs has played out in communities around the globe, including close to home. Taxi drivers say it’s unfair to allow a parallel industry to operate without the same restrictions they face, such as fare regulation and limits on the number of vehicles. Based on Tuesday’s vote in Broward, gone from the law are fingerprint-based, county-conducted, FBI background checks, a geography test for drivers, a requirement that the company ensure drivers weren’t released from prison in the past seven years, a provision for unlimited audits conducted by the county, and many other rules.
The new law, which governs all “transportation network companies” and traditional cab outfits as well, allows companies to self-regulate when it comes to vetting drivers’ backgrounds and making sure their vehicles check out. It even allows a company to operate with insurance the county believes doesn’t meet state requirements, and grants the company six months to get an opinion on the matter from the state.
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