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
E-Scholars rebrands, extending Regnier legacy deeper into influential UMKC accelerator
E-Scholars — the University of Missouri-Kansas City’s flagship accelerator program — isn’t going anywhere, Alex Matlack shared, but it is getting a rebrand. After listening to feedback from alumni, mentors, and community members, the program formally known as Entrepreneurship Scholars is now the Regnier Venture Accelerator, joining the likes of the Regnier Venture Creation Challenge…
Plaza-based beauty influencer draws upon her own experience to launch signature brow line
Bella Jimenez built a real-life following in the local beauty industry, perfecting brows across Kansas City for eight years (four on the Country Club Plaza). But with that influence, she realized, came a responsibility to be authentic and honest about brands — ultimately creating her own line of brow products. “I wanted a professional line from…
KC Bier Co’s immersive biergarten set to open in Lenexa before thirsty World Cup visitors arrive
A popular Kansas City brewery officially broke ground Friday on a highly anticipated, border-hopping expansion that will bring one of the nation’s largest authentic Bavarian-style biergartens to Johnson County. “This project has been a long time coming,” said Camille Christie, Vice President of Development and Leasing at West Star Development, which is adding KC Bier…
LISTEN: Founder on his third startup shares his ‘toilet test’ for culture, talks the lonely eship rollercoaster from Ireland to Topeka
On this episode of Startland News’ new Plug and Play Topeka founder podcast series, we chat with Barry McDonogh — CEO of Hinalea Imaging — to uncover how cutting-edge hyperspectral imaging is changing the way industries see the world. From food safety and agriculture to pharmaceuticals and defense, Hinalea’s technology reveals the invisible — capturing data…