AUSTIN, TX – Yesterday, the Austin City council voted to enact new regulations on transportation networking companies like Uber and Lyft. Among the new regulations passed by the Council in a 9-2 vote were a fingerprint-based background check for drivers to be phased in over the next year, a mandate that ridesharing companies have a representative in Austin, and data-sharing requirements. Texas Public Policy Foundation’s Center for Local Governance Director James Quintero issued the following statement:
“Austin’s new ridesharing regulations put consumers on the road to higher prices. Companies like Uber and Lyft offer an innovative service at a competitive price; but because an elite few in Austin city government believe that they can judge quality and safety better than people operating in the free-market, Austinites are going to be stuck paying more for travel.”
For more information or to request an interview with Mr. Quintero, please contact Caroline Espinosa at [email protected] or 512-472-2700.
James Quintero is Director of the Center for Local Governance at the Texas Public Policy Foundation.
The Texas Public Policy Foundation is a non-profit, free-market research institute based in Austin, Texas.