NewsWatch
Keeping a critical eye on Uber,
Lyft and other transportation
network companies
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This is 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 and fair commerce from so-called ride-sharing or ride-booking services such as Uber and Lyft. Visit the Archive to read previous editions. Click here to join our mailing list.
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Police say Uber driver arrested at Tampa Airport
A woman who police say is an Uber driver, Themi Andrea Hoffman, was arrested in the Tampa International Airport's cell phone waiting lot. Police say Hoffman was passed out in her car and appeared to have been waiting to pick up passengers. Hoffman didn't have a driver's license and was arrested in violation of probation related to drug charges in Pinellas County. "The fact that this kind of person could slip through the background checks performed by Uber is unacceptable," said Victor Crist, who chairs the Hillsborough County Public Transportation Commission.
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Uber driver worked while awaiting trial on 2 rapes
A Somerville man charged with two rapes more than a decade ago worked as an Uber driver while awaiting trial - despite spending more than a decade on the lam - and one ride-share critic said a fingerprint background check may have raised a red flag. Yves C. Goin, 40, is accused of raping two women at Massachusetts Maritime Academy while he was a cadet there in the fall of 2002. He is set to go on trial in Barnstable Superior Court in August.
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Uber driver charged with raping drunk woman
Police are investigating a claim that an Uber driver sexually assaulting an intoxicated woman in February, authorities announced. In late February, El Cajon police received a report of a woman alleging she was sexually assaulted by an Uber driver while she was a passenger in his car, Lt. Rob Ransweiler said. John Sanchez, 52, was later identified as the suspect. ECPD served search warrants on the suspect's residence, as well as his silver 2012 Scion XB, as part of this investigation. Sanchez was arrested on Tuesday, Ransweiler said.
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Federal judge not so sure Uber and Lyft are any different from cab companies
What's the difference between Uber and a taxi company? A federal judge isn't so sure there's much of one. U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel Gorton ordered the city of Boston to revise its taxi regulations within six months, and to give the court a good reason why the city shouldn't be forced to regulate taxis and other ride-hailing services in the same way.
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Uber CEO must face price-fixing lawsuit by passengers
Travis Kalanick, chief executive officer of Uber, has failed to win the dismissal of an antitrust lawsuit accusing him of scheming to drive up prices for passengers who use the popular ride-sharing service. U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff in Manhattan said Kalanick must face claims he conspired with drivers to ensure they charge prices set by an algorithm in the Uber smartphone app to hail rides, including "surge pricing" during periods of peak demand.
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Safety risk outweighs convenience of Uber, Lyft
Let us get something straight: Uber and Lyft did not invent anything. There is no comparison to typewriters and horses-and-buggies. They provide the same service as traditional taxicabs; they just openly flout the law. In doing so, they can provide a cheaper service. The young and the young-at-heart who dominate this city do not think about such complexities in the midst of inebriation, when attempting to procure transportation to and from watering holes on Sixth Street or elsewhere.
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City officials: Uber, others don't have license to operate in Elgin
Transportation network companies are required to pay a $500 yearly license to operate in Elgin, but none have done that in the 10 months since the rule was enacted, city officials said. That has irked taxi company owner Naomi Hjelm of A#1 Cab Dispatch in South Elgin. "The fact is, (the city) passed an ordinance," said Hjelm, who emailed council members about the issue. "The fact is, they didn't care to check to see if anybody did what they were supposed to do."
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Uber resists driver fingerprinting in New Jersey, says it will hurt minorities
Fingerprint checks show if a person was arrested, but the databases often do not indicate whether there was a conviction, and false arrests are not uncommon, especially in minority neighborhoods, Amanda DeSantis, Uber's regional trust and safety chief, told The Record in a phone interview. "We are looking for actual convictions," she said. State licensing requirements that include comparing an applicant's fingerprints against those in criminal databases are routinely applied to nurses, teachers, taxi and limousine drivers, and mortgage brokers, among others.
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Former Uber worker claims company investigator illegally entered her home
A former Uber worker claims that an investigator acting on the company's behalf entered her apartment without permission and acted in an intimidating manner in an attempt to discover the source of a BuzzFeed News story. The former employee sent the company a cease and desist letter in response. Uber previously confirmed to BuzzFeed News that it is investigating the source of the leak.
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Uber says it's not liable for drivers' misdeeds
A lawyer for Uber told a federal judge Friday that the ride-hailing company isn't responsible for the actions of two of its drivers, whom two women claim raped them on separate occasions. "The job being performed has nothing to do with the act," Uber attorney Josh Cohen said, arguing that the sexual assaults alleged by two Jane Does occurred for the "personal gratification" of the drivers and were in no way connected to their jobs.
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Drivers blame Uber's poor screening process for Kalamazoo shooting
The man accused of murdering six people in a string of random shootings this weekend was an Uber driver-and other drivers are saying the company could be doing more to keep its riders safe. Jason Dalton, 45, stands accused of massacring six people and wounding others in a shooting spree around Kalamazoo, Michigan. According to reports, he opened fire at various locations after and perhaps between taking fares.
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