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Hillsborough regulators will stop ticketing Uber, Lyft drivers until October hearing

 
Uber drivers and supporters fill the room at Wednesday morning's Hillsborough County Public Transportation Commission meeting. [CAITLIN JOHNSTON   |   Times]
Uber drivers and supporters fill the room at Wednesday morning's Hillsborough County Public Transportation Commission meeting. [CAITLIN JOHNSTON | Times]
Published Sept. 10, 2015

TAMPA — Local regulators extended an open hand to rideshare companies Uber and Lyft on Wednesday — and then balled up the other one, ready to keep fighting.

The Public Transportation Commission's board voted to stop ticketing rideshare drivers through October while its ongoing legal battle with the companies makes its way through the courts.

But in a second vote, the PTC also decided to ask state lawmakers to help it circumvent that legal fight by proposing a bill that would allow the agency to finally start regulating Uber and Lyft — just like it does other for-hire vehicles in Hillsborough County.

PTC Chairman and Hillsborough County Commissioner Victor Crist said the vote to stop ticketing Uber and Lyft drivers until after an October court hearing was a show of "good faith."

Uber was not as impressed.

"We agree that we shouldn't be punishing these hard-working driver partners who are providing a valuable service to the community," said Uber general manager for Tampa Bay Christine Mitchell by phone after the meeting.

Mitchell then criticized the board's continued attempts to tie-up Uber's business model with regulations, this time on the state level.

"They're not proposing something new," said Mitchell, who left the meeting before its conclusion to fly back to Washington, D.C. "They're just doing it through a new avenue."

Uber supporters packed Wednesday's PTC board meeting — as they were prodded to by a blast email the day before — to protest regulations the county has been enforcing since the rideshare company started operating here in April 2014.

For nearly an hour, drivers and riders spoke about the convenience, reliability and affordability of the service during public comments. Afterward PTC board member and County Commissioner Al Higginbotham said he no longer felt comfortable with his vote last month to allow inspectors to continue issuing tickets despite the agency's recent legal setback.

In August, Hillsborough Circuit Judge Paul Huey denied a motion from the PTC asking for an injunction that would have forced Uber to stop serving the county. Huey wants both sides to hold mediation talks before an October court hearing. Meanwhile the PTC filed for summary judgment, asking the judge to decide several legal issues in its favor.

Higginbotham made the motion that the PTC inspectors cease all ticket-writing against rideshare companies until that court hearing takes place.

"This is by no means to say that we're stepping back," Higginbotham said, "but it's not good for the drivers and it's not good for the visitors in this community to see that conflict.

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"I don't see the value in continuing to issue citations."

PTC board member and Tampa City Council member Frank Reddick voted against the motion, which passed 3-1.

State Sen. Jeff Brandes, who has long called for the dissolution of the PTC, said the decision to temporarily stop ticketing Uber and Lyft drivers was "a step in the right direction." However, the St. Petersburg Republican also said he was "extremely concerned" about any legislative action proposed by the PTC regarding rideshares.

"These things are no different than what they're doing in other markets," PTC executive director Kyle Cockream said. "It's not like they can't do them. Everything we're asking, they're complying with in other markets."

Under the PTC's proposed legislation, the companies would have to require drivers to undergo a Level II background check including fingerprinting, carry proper insurance, meet ADA requirements and pass annual vehicle inspections.

The PTC has been locked in a regulatory battle over those issues with Uber and Lyft for the past 17 months. The companies use smartphone apps to connect riders with nearby drivers who use their own cars.

Hillsborough regulators have long argued that rideshare companies do not meet the licensing, insurance and safety requirements the county demands of for-hire vehicles like taxis. Uber and Lyft operate freely in Pasco and Pinellas counties, which do not have PTC-like agencies.

"It's essentially dead on arrival as it's currently drafted," said Brandes, who has tried unsuccessfully to pass rideshare regulations the past couple years. "I don't believe there's the support there. … It would have significant challenges."

But Crist said the PTC has already found sponsors for the bill — including a high-ranking senior legislator from outside the local delegation whom Crist would not identify.

The next step for the PTC will be garnering support for its bill from the Tampa Bay legislative delegation — Brandes notwithstanding.

Contact Caitlin Johnston at cjohnston@tampabay.com or (813) 226-3401. Follow @cljohnst.