Ride-hailing services revving up again in Nevada
Uber has regulatory hurdles to clear before it can go full throttle in Las Vegas
Taxi cab drivers gather Friday, May 29, 2015, in front of Caesars Palace to protest Uber, the ride-hailing service trying to break into the Las Vegas market. Laws signed by Gov. Brian Sandoval opened the door, but there remain details to be worked out before Uber drivers can pick up customers on the Strip.
By Conor Shine (contact)
Sunday, June 28, 2015 | 2 a.m.
After a thwarted launch last year and four months of intense lobbying at the Nevada Legislature, Uber now can legally operate its ride-hailing service in Nevada, thanks to a pair of laws signed last month by Gov. Brian Sandoval.
But don’t pull out your smartphone and download the app just yet.
Before Uber drivers can start giving rides to valley residents, even more rules will need to be written, this time by the Nevada Transportation Authority. That could happen as soon as this week, but Uber and any other ride-hailing service that wants to operate in Nevada then will have to apply with the NTA for approval.
That means it still could be several weeks, and possibly longer, before you can catch an Uber ride near your home — and potentially even longer for a pickup at a Strip casino or the airport.
Uber will have to negotiate separate deals with McCarran International Airport officials and Strip casino companies before drivers can begin picking up riders at those locations.
The new laws
A pair of bills passed by the Legislature cleared the way for Uber and other ride-hailing companies, known formally as transportation network companies, to come to Nevada. The laws set insurance, background-check and vehicle-maintenance standards for drivers, and imposed a 3 percent surcharge on all fares.
But rulemaking is a two-step process in Nevada, with lawmakers laying out broad requirements, and state agencies, in this case the Nevada Transportation Authority, filling in details.
Transportation Authority staffers have been working since the law was passed to draft an emergency set of regulations that would provide clarification.
Once those rules are in place, Uber and other ride-hailing companies could apply for a permit as soon as July 1, and the Transportation Authority would have up to 120 days to process and review.
A set of permanent regulations also will be developed over the next year, with workshops and public meetings, to address insurance requirements, driver permitting and more.
Getting to the Strip
During the few weeks Uber operated in Las Vegas before being shut down by state officials, drivers gave thousands of rides to residents from all corners of the valley.
The only places they weren’t active were the two places where cabs are in highest demand — the Strip and the airport. To avoid running afoul of hotel and airport officials, the company configured its app to block customers in those areas from ordering rides.
Although Uber is confident it can be successful serving residents in neighborhoods typically underserved by taxis, it’s hard to ignore the resort corridor, which accounts for about 95 percent of the nearly 26 million taxi rides in the region each year.
At the airport, officials have discussed setting up a specific zone where Uber drivers could pick up riders separate from the taxi lines.
“The airport is diligently working on how that type of operation would work,” Director of Aviation Rosemary Vassiliadis said. “It’s a different type of behavior. The pickup is really different than how a cab, shuttle bus or limo operate.”
Airport officials also are reviewing whether insurance requirements for drivers meet county standards — the airport is county-owned — and how to levy the $2 surcharge tacked onto fares that originate at the airport.
San Francisco International Airport welcomed Uber drivers last fall after nearly a year of contentious back and forth that led to cease-and-desist letters and threats to shut down ride-hailing companies illegally operating at the airport. Los Angeles also is in the process of writing rules that would allow Uber drivers to begin servicing Los Angeles International Airport starting this summer. The rules would allow drivers to pick up and drop off passengers in the airport’s departure level and also impose a $4 per passenger fee on airport fares.
Resorts on the Strip are sorting through issues of logistics and liability before allowing Uber to enter their private properties and serve guests.
Several casino companies acknowledged discussions with Uber, but none was willing to speak about the specific issues that need to be resolved. The issues likely revolve around passenger pickup, because Uber’s on-demand service and variable pricing don’t mesh with the taxicab lines that are standard on the Strip.
For its part, Uber is talking with casinos, restaurants, bars, show venues and businesses throughout Las Vegas to educate them about the company’s service. Spokeswoman Eva Behrend said the response has been welcoming.
“Everything’s going well so far,” Behrend sai
Uber has regulatory hurdles to clear before it can go full throttle in Las Vegas
By Conor Shine (contact)
Sunday, June 28, 2015 | 2 a.m.
After a thwarted launch last year and four months of intense lobbying at the Nevada Legislature, Uber now can legally operate its ride-hailing service in Nevada, thanks to a pair of laws signed last month by Gov. Brian Sandoval.
But don’t pull out your smartphone and download the app just yet.
Before Uber drivers can start giving rides to valley residents, even more rules will need to be written, this time by the Nevada Transportation Authority. That could happen as soon as this week, but Uber and any other ride-hailing service that wants to operate in Nevada then will have to apply with the NTA for approval.
That means it still could be several weeks, and possibly longer, before you can catch an Uber ride near your home — and potentially even longer for a pickup at a Strip casino or the airport.
Uber will have to negotiate separate deals with McCarran International Airport officials and Strip casino companies before drivers can begin picking up riders at those locations.
The new laws
A pair of bills passed by the Legislature cleared the way for Uber and other ride-hailing companies, known formally as transportation network companies, to come to Nevada. The laws set insurance, background-check and vehicle-maintenance standards for drivers, and imposed a 3 percent surcharge on all fares.
But rulemaking is a two-step process in Nevada, with lawmakers laying out broad requirements, and state agencies, in this case the Nevada Transportation Authority, filling in details.
Transportation Authority staffers have been working since the law was passed to draft an emergency set of regulations that would provide clarification.
Once those rules are in place, Uber and other ride-hailing companies could apply for a permit as soon as July 1, and the Transportation Authority would have up to 120 days to process and review.
A set of permanent regulations also will be developed over the next year, with workshops and public meetings, to address insurance requirements, driver permitting and more.
Getting to the Strip
During the few weeks Uber operated in Las Vegas before being shut down by state officials, drivers gave thousands of rides to residents from all corners of the valley.
The only places they weren’t active were the two places where cabs are in highest demand — the Strip and the airport. To avoid running afoul of hotel and airport officials, the company configured its app to block customers in those areas from ordering rides.
Although Uber is confident it can be successful serving residents in neighborhoods typically underserved by taxis, it’s hard to ignore the resort corridor, which accounts for about 95 percent of the nearly 26 million taxi rides in the region each year.
At the airport, officials have discussed setting up a specific zone where Uber drivers could pick up riders separate from the taxi lines.
“The airport is diligently working on how that type of operation would work,” Director of Aviation Rosemary Vassiliadis said. “It’s a different type of behavior. The pickup is really different than how a cab, shuttle bus or limo operate.”
Airport officials also are reviewing whether insurance requirements for drivers meet county standards — the airport is county-owned — and how to levy the $2 surcharge tacked onto fares that originate at the airport.
San Francisco International Airport welcomed Uber drivers last fall after nearly a year of contentious back and forth that led to cease-and-desist letters and threats to shut down ride-hailing companies illegally operating at the airport. Los Angeles also is in the process of writing rules that would allow Uber drivers to begin servicing Los Angeles International Airport starting this summer. The rules would allow drivers to pick up and drop off passengers in the airport’s departure level and also impose a $4 per passenger fee on airport fares.
Resorts on the Strip are sorting through issues of logistics and liability before allowing Uber to enter their private properties and serve guests.
Several casino companies acknowledged discussions with Uber, but none was willing to speak about the specific issues that need to be resolved. The issues likely revolve around passenger pickup, because Uber’s on-demand service and variable pricing don’t mesh with the taxicab lines that are standard on the Strip.
For its part, Uber is talking with casinos, restaurants, bars, show venues and businesses throughout Las Vegas to educate them about the company’s service. Spokeswoman Eva Behrend said the response has been welcoming.
“Everything’s going well so far,” Behrend sai
