I fully expect the ordinance placed on the City Council docket today regulating transportation network companies like Uber and Lyft to be met with the same misleading hyperbole we’ve heard before.
Let me be clear: I welcome new technologies and entrepreneurial industries to Kansas City, and any assertion to the contrary is ridiculous. Just this week, Kansas City is one of only five cities in the world being recognized for our achievements in those areas at the Global Entrepreneurship Congress in Milan, Italy.
It’s important to know that ridesharing is not illegal in Kansas City. Some Uber drivers are legally operating here based on the current regulations that Uber is working so hard to eliminate. Z-Trip, another ridesharing company, is also fully compliant.
All Uber has to do is share their drivers’ background checks, ensure their drivers have driver’s certificates and their cars are permitted, and ensure their drivers carry adequate insurance.
Technology and convenience cannot trump safety. Kansas City can be a welcoming place for high-tech industries without compromising safety. I welcome companies to our market who can play by the rules and who care as deeply about our citizens’ safety as they do about their profits.
