Welcome to the latest edition of AFT NewsWatch, a weekly service of Advocates for Fairness in Transportation, an ad hoc group of regulated transportation service companies dedicated to informing and educating the public on threats to public safety from new so-called ride-sharing or ride-booking services such as Uber, Lyft and Sidecar. Visit the Archive to read previous editions.

City reviews of would-be Uber drivers find crimes the company missed

Houston officials discovered crimes ranging from aggravated robbery to driving on a suspended license when they checked the backgrounds of prospective Uber drivers who had been cleared by the company's review, according to a new report prepared for a Texas House legislative hearing. 

Read more from the Houston Chronicle

Denver Uber driver charged with attempted burglary of passenger's home

A Denver UberX driver has been charged with three crimes after he allegedly tried to break into the home of a passenger he had dropped off at the airport. Gerald Montgomery, 51, was charged with second-degree burglary, possession of burglary tools and attempted first-degree criminal trespass, according to the Denver District Attorney's office. 

Read more from The Denver Post

Woman says she was raped by UberX driver in Philadelphia

A woman has alleged that an UberX driver raped her after picking her up in Old City on February 6th, according to a report she filed with the Philadelphia Police Department. The 33-year-old told police the UberX driver held her arms down, ripped her pants, and raped her. After the attack, he drove her around for more than two hours before letting her out of the car, according to her report, which she filed the same day as the assault. 

Read more from Philadelphia Magazine

At this 'Lounge,' drivers find the help Uber doesn't offer

Mike says he has mastered the art of Uber driving. "I don't think there's anything anyone can teach me," he tells me, sitting at a tiny table near Groove lounge, a hangout for on-demand drivers in San Francisco. "I've figured it out over time, just by being a savvy individual. Not everyone is." He started driving for a ride-hailing app called Sidecar in 2012. Nowadays, speeding through the streets of the city, he juggles rides for multiple services, including Uber, Lyft, and more. 

Read more from Wired

Uber's breathalyzer kiosk offers a free ride home (if you're drunk enough)

A marketing stunt by Uber's Toronto-based team appears to be going down well with the folk there, but hey, it involves free rides, so what's not to like? In an effort to highlight its safety credentials, the ride-sharing company installed a so-called 'Uber Safe kiosk' on one of the city's streets.  

Read more from Digital Trends

Uber-They drive drunk so you don't have to

Uber, the app-based car-hiring service, recently released new safety initiatives to ensure the protection of their passengers. Like its competitors, Lyft, Sidecar and Via, Uber does not tolerate drug or alcohol use by drivers while using the app. Unlike the competition, Uber is the only one that has sent me a drunk driver. 

Read more from the Observer

Uber 'horrible for air quality and traffic congestion,' Santa Monica Mayor says

Santa Monica Mayor Kevin McKeown had harsh words for Uber during last Tuesday's City Council discussion on app-based transportation services and taxicabs. McKeown said he was disturbed to hear that Uber contractors were continuously driving throughout the City, sometimes in a small area and even if they were not carrying passengers. .

Read more from the Santa Monica Lookout

The expanding war on Uber: Why Uber is doomed part II

Uber, the new ride sharing platform that proposes to disrupt the global taxi and limo business by breaking all the rules and ignoring regulations, has probably got, as its biggest line item expense, legal fees. Thats because, around the world, municipalities, established taxi companies, their drivers' associations, and in many cases, the police are involved in trying to shut down the service. 

Read more from Midas Letter

Man says APD impounded Uber driver's car during airport pickup

An Atlanta man says he's confused about who can legally pick up passengers at the airport after police cited his Uber driver and impounded the driver's car. That passenger is a WSBTV employee. Rich Thomas said he called Uber using the app on his phone but according to an Atlanta police report when he got in the driver's car an officer stopped and cited them.  

Read more from WSB-TV Atlanta

Uber launches cash-only rickshaw service in Indian capital

Ride-hailing service Uber has launched a new service in the Indian capital of New Delhi - for auto rickshaws, the popular three-wheeled vehicles. The big difference between UberAuto and the ride-hailing service's other offerings worldwide: You pay the autos, as the vehicles are known in India, only in cash. 

Read more from NPR

Business travelers driving Uber growth

Business travelers are bypassing the taxi queue with greater frequency, choosing instead ride-hailing services like Uber Technologies. A new report by expense management system provider Certify shows that 47 percent of the ground transportation rides by its users in March were through Uber. 

Read more from The Associated Press

Uber says it will leave Kansas City over new regulations

Uber officials say the company will stop operating in Kansas City after the city council approved new regulations for such ride-sharing operations. Among other things, the regulations require adequate insurance and background check information from taxis and ride-booking services. It charges individual drivers $250 but that would drop to $100 if the parent company paid an annual fee of $40,000.

Read more from The Associated Press

Portland lawmakers delay vote on legalizing Uber despite prior agreement

One month ago, Uber was feeling "really optimistic" about operating again in Portland. Now, probably not so much. After a lengthly six-hour city council meeting on Thursday, Portland lawmakers delayed a vote on officially approving a task force report that outlined regulations for a 120-day pilot program for transportation network companies like Uber and Lyft. 

Read more from GeekWire