Uber in Buffalo

[WNYresident]

Buffalo cab companies push back at Uber to get drivers checked

ide-hailing proponents for upstate New York are now feeling the brunt of a major push back by Buffalo taxi operators.
Companies like Liberty Taxi are pointing to cases of sexual harassment and even rape by ride-hailing drivers. They say these incidents, and allegations of sexual harassment within industry leader Uber, make the case for drivers to undergo background checks and fingerprinting before picking up their first upstate passengers.

http://buffalonews.com/2017/02/21/ca...ime=1487716346

I heard bits and pieces about this on the radio today. A person who called in said there were over 2000 reported rapes/sexual harassment claims with Uber

Quite a few issues with taxi cab drivers and rape/harassment

https://www.google.com/#q=rapist+who+was+a+taxi+driver

https://search.yahoo.com/search?fr=m...+a+taxi+driver

I found this:

Reported List of Incident Involving Uber and Lyft


http://www.whosdrivingyou.org/rideshare-incidents

[WNYresident]

“The public needs to be protected,” Yuhnke said. “When riders get into a car, they must have some level of comfort that their driver is not a person with a criminal history who could possibly cause them harm.

Isn't there a nys law or federal law that doesn't permit a possible employee if they have a criminal record on their job application?

Shouldn't the employer have some level of comfort that their new employee is not a person with a criminal history who could possible cause them harm or financial loss?

[WNYresident]

He also said Uber or other companies could already be operating upstate if they followed the same rules as taxi operators by purchasing a city permit and commercial insurance.

“They are not in upstate New York because they choose not to,” he said.

How about commercial insurance but skip the city permit.

A lot of people/businesses left NYS because he's right. They are not in upstate New York because they choose not to"

[leftWNYbecauseofBS]

Here is the thing about Uber as it relates to drivers. It's a volume game. The goal is not to hire full time drivers, although there are many, but rather to manage hundreds or thousands of drivers who work here and there under technology. Once fully deployed it pretty much kills the local taxi industry. I stress the word industry because it's the companies that run the cabs and who have paid for medallions that suffer the most. Drivers can simply migrate to whatever service users are using.

What the taxi industry is trying to do is create a barrier to entry that is high enough to discourage part time drivers. This prevents the market from being flooded and in turn allows them to keep their marketshare. At the end of the day technology is going to win. Uber and Lyft are just brands and use pretty much the same tech. Other brands will be created but the same concept will eventually take over.

The real title wave that is going to come in 5 to 10 years is the hard data on the impact of ride sharing as it relates to the cost of infrastructure and development. Ride sharing improves the use of mass transit and ride sharing removes the burden of parking. When these number flesh out it's going to be very hard to play the current game that lobbyist are playing to block the expansion of ride sharing. It's going to be hard for politicians to only talk about safety and insurance when real data on taxpayer savings are presented and verified.