Buckle Up: 'Taxis Gone Wild' May Come to Pass in Portland

HELL ON WHEELS: Taxis jammed Pioneer Courthouse Square on Jan. 13 as cabbies protested what they fear will be Uber's unjust takeover of the market. The protest was organized by the Transportation Fairness Alliance, a coalition of five local cab companies. "We feel that Uber has been very good at getting their message across," says spokesman Noah Ernst. "They have a lot of money to throw at it. They hire publicists and lobbyists, right up to the former head of Obama's campaign."
By ANNA WALTERS

A city experiment to deregulate Portland’s taxi industry—deemed “Taxis Gone Wild,” by City Commissioner Steve Novick—gained speed today, at a meeting where a special task force voted on rules to govern the Uber and other ride-hailing companies.   


Uber and Lyft are set to roll back to town mid-month for a 120-day pilot period. In preparation of their arrival, the task force has been proposing new rules and tweaks to the city's current “for-hire” transportation regulation. 

Their latest recommendation: To rip out rules restricting the number of taxi companies and number of vehicles allowed to operate in the city. Additionally, they propose allowing any new cab companies to enter the market without the usual city approval. 

As for Uber and Lyft or any other ride-hailing services that want to pick up Portlanders? They get to have an unlimited number of cars on the road too.

These proposed rules—set to be reviewed by City Council April 9—would only apply for the 120-day pilot period, while the city collects the data from all “for-hire” companies. 

The task force is looking to city staff to hash out the fine print, like who would issue permits—the city or companies—and how to issue permits speedily.

WWeek 2015

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