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With less than two months until the clock strikes midnight on Mayor Charlie Hales' deal with ride-app company Uber, Portland city officials still have lots of questions unanswered.
One of the biggest: What data will Uber give City Hall on its riders and drivers?
Hales cut a bargain with Uber in December after the San Francisco company invaded the Portland taxi market. The deal says Uber and its competitor Lyft can return to Portland by April 9, when the city will begin an experiment in lifting some of the rules currently regulating the cab industry.
The task force assigned with crafting new rules for the so-called "ride-sharing" companies met Thursday evening to hear presentations from Uber and Lyft—the first time these companies have appeared before city regulators in more than a year.
The Oregonian reported after the meeting that some officials doubt the task force will have new regulations ready by the April 9 deadline—the start of a period City Commissioner Steve Novick has described as "Taxis Gone Wild."
Another question the task force faces: Can it trust Uber and Lyft to turn over data on its drivers and riders, to see how the company is upending the taxi market?
That information will be crucial if taxi companies have any hope of competing—and it's also important for seeing if Uber and Lyft are serving poorer areas of town, people with disabilities, and customers making short trips. These are the least lucrative fares, and city regulators are supposed to protect them.
Getting "sharing economy" companies to share data has turned into one of City Hall's most thorny challenges. Portland regulators are struggling to get addresses from Airbnb, even as some of that company's clients are demonstrably breaking city rules.
At last night's hearing, Chris Bebo of the Oregon Restaurant and Lodging Association asked representatives from Uber and Lyft if they would be more forthcoming with data.
Watch the reply from Caitlin
O'Neill and Brooke Steger of Uber, and Annabel Chang of Lyft.
WWeek 2015