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Kansas City regulators considering changes to Uber contract

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Built into the ordinance passed by Kansas City’s City Council last year is language that after one year, the city would revisit its deal with ride sharing service Uber.

“Neither side got everything that they wanted, neither the city nor Uber,” said KC Regulated Industries Division Manager Jim Ready.

One issue Ready is ready to address is what he calls the 30-day “loophole.”

“There’s a 30-day trial period within the ordinances and that 30-day trial period says that anybody can try out a transportation network company and it starts the day they take that first trip,” said Ready.

After 30 days, drivers operating in Kansas City need to have a small business license and get a driver’s permit and license from the city.

“The certainty is that when there’s a vehicle permit and a driver’s permit with that person, they’re safe,” said Ready.

Worried about the 47 percent

According to Ready, 53 percent of the 2,300 drivers who’ve applied for the permits have been approved.

“When you’ve got 47 percent of possible cars rolling up into Kauffman Stadium saying, ‘I don’t know. I’m with Uber and I’m in my 30-day trial period and I’m here to pick up folks,’ it’s an easy window to just make that statement and get up there and pick somebody up,” said Ready. “This whole thing is about safety.”

City says permits help ensure rider safety

“If somebody doesn’t have a driver’s certificate and they don’t have that driver’s permit in their window, don’t get in their car because they shouldn’t be trusted,” said Ready. “That’s my problem right now is that that safety tip is gone with this 30-day trial period, and that’s got to stop.”

According to Ready, the city has denied permits to drivers by using background checks after Uber already cleared the driver with the company’s own background check process.

“There have been some folks that have come through and had some background checks already done that were permitted and ready to go by Uber. Only we got some red flags and we looked into it and they didn’t qualify to be a driver in Kansas City, Missouri,” said Ready.

Uber response

An Uber employee with knowledge of internal operations tells 41 Action News that Uber believes that its driver screening process, which includes “screening through national, state and local databases, stacks up well against the alternatives.”

An Uber comment regarding Kansas City regulator’s concerns on the 30-day grace period was not immediately available.

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Brian Abel can be reached at brian.abel@kshb.com. 

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