Lyft and Kansas City may reunite thanks to new ride-sharing law
April 27, 2017 | Bobby Burch
Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens on Monday signed legislation that could bring the ride-sharing company Lyft back to the Kansas City market.
Passed with strong support from Missouri lawmakers, Gov. Greitens’ signature sets forth regulations for ride-sharing companies such as Uber and Lyft, including licensing fees, background checks and inspections.
Lyft halted its Kansas City operations in October of 2014 after the city established for-hire transportation regulations it deemed as too burdensome. In 2015 the company said it wouldn’t return to Kansas City, while Uber agreed to work within the new regulatory framework. Uber and Lyft issued statements saying the new law — which also exempts ride-sharing companies from local and municipal taxes — will allow them to expand throughout Missouri.
The law should help create a more competitive environment for ride-sharing firms in Kansas City, Mo. and create more jobs around the state. Lyft is now in operation in Kansas City, Kan. and Johnson County.
The Kansas City Star reports that the new law will spur most area taxis to operate like Uber and Lyft vehicles. Bill George — the CEO of Kansas City Transportation Group, which operates hundreds of taxis in the area — said that cabs operating under Yellow Cab and 10/10 Taxi will be shifted to zTrip, a “transportation network company” or TNC. TNCs fall under the same state licensing rules as Uber and Lyft.
2017 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Events Preview: GEW Innovation Exchange
There are a boatload of entrepreneurial events hosted in Kansas City on a weekly basis. Whether you’re an entrepreneur, investor, supporter, or curious Kansas Citian, we recommend these upcoming events for you. Join us in celebrating the remainder of Global Entrepreneurship Week and check out these events. WEEKLY EVENT PREVIEW The Capital Series: So You…
Super Dispatch founder Bek Abdullayev delivers trends in trucking
Editor’s note: This content is sponsored by LaunchKC but independently produced by Startland News. Technological advancements are bringing significant change to nearly all industries — and trucking is no different. Autonomous vehicles, machine learning and the Internet of Things are just a few of the trends on which Super Dispatch founder Bek Abdullayev has his…
KCK no longer on list of America’s worst connected cities
Despite a politically divided metro and world, progress is happening in Kansas City, Kan. In 2014, the National Digital Inclusion Alliance rated the city as the 8th worst connected city in the nation. Thanks to recent census data, those numbers have been updated and things are looking up for Kansas City, Kan. The initiative released…
Three local GEW events you don’t want to miss
Global Entrepreneurship Week is coming up quickly and there are some events you won’t want to miss. From Nov. 10 to 22, Kansas City will celebrate the global celebration along with more than 160 participating countries. Global Entrepreneurship Week was launched by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation in 2008 with the intent to inspire millions…