Ride-share operations prepare for long legal battle in Pennsylvania

In the battle to bring ride-share operations such as Uber and Lyft to Pennsylvania, a guerrilla war has bogged down into trench warfare, with both sides settling in for a long fight.

Advocates and opponents are campaigning on several fronts, seeking popular support and legal backing.

Youthful supporters last week gathered online petition signatures and rallied at the Capitol in Harrisburg, and taxi-driving opponents in Philadelphia marshalled motorcades of cabs around City Hall.

Lobbyists pleaded their cases with legislators, and lawyers filed briefs with regulators.

And, under the radar, private ride-share drivers and passengers continued to connect in the Philadelphia suburbs and South Jersey.

Uber and Lyft are San Francisco companies that link people looking for rides with car owners looking for extra money. Phone apps allow riders to summon a car, pay for the service, and get a receipt, all electronically.

The companies' disruptive business model has been to enter a market first and seek regulatory approval later.

That cheers many customers who are glad to have a modern alternative to inadequate - or nonexistent - taxi service.

But it has upset traditional taxi operators and state and local regulators, who see the well-funded upstarts as unfair competitors ignoring ride-for-hire laws.

Uber and Lyft arrived in Pennsylvania in February, launching ride-sharing in Pittsburgh to considerable public and political support. But they quickly ran afoul of regulators from the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, who said they were essentially unlicensed taxis.

After months of defying cease-and-desist orders from the PUC, the ride-share companies asked for - and received - temporary authority to operate in Allegheny County. They now seek permanent authority statewide.

But the hopes of Uber and Lyft for a lightning strike in Harrisburg with a quick rewriting of state laws seemed to evaporate last week. Legislative leaders said bills to provide new rules for ride-sharing were unlikely to get a vote this year.

And the enforcement arm of the PUC, which regulates taxi services everywhere but Philadelphia, proposed an eye-popping $6.97 million fine against Lyft for defying it in Allegheny County.

Uber spokesman Taylor Bennett blasted the pace of events in Harrisburg.

"With over 40,000 petition signatures in a few short days, a countless number of phone calls and e-mails, and a rally in Harrisburg, the people of Pennsylvania have made it starkly clear that they demand safer, more affordable transportation options," Bennett said. "Our legislators . . . should stop ignoring their voices, stop playing politics, and take action now to bring ride-sharing across the commonwealth."

"We're confident and hopeful this is going to happen," he added. "It's not over. The session has three days left."

The state insurance industry urged caution, saying passengers and drivers needed more protection.

Samuel Marshall, president of the Insurance Federation of Pennsylvania, said "neither Uber nor Lyft was able to describe any standard procedure for how their drivers should report claims or what information they give their drivers regarding insurance contacts."

"They weren't clear about giving their drivers an insurance card. And neither of them was clear about how consumers should file claims.

"That, combined with the uncertainty they create by not providing primary coverage, means pursuing a claim will be needlessly chaotic and expensive for consumers."

In Philadelphia, the regulatory power is the Philadelphia Parking Authority, which has viewed the ride-share operators as illegal cabs and cracked down hard on violators.

(Uber Black, an electronically summoned limousine service, operates in Philadelphia under Parking Authority regulation.)

The Parking Authority wants the legislature to exempt Philadelphia from any statewide rules, and the chairman of the House Consumer Affairs Committee, State Rep. Robert Godshall (R., Montgomery) said he would try to do that.

The slow pace has left many passengers and drivers frustrated.

Patsy and Tom LaManna of East Norriton said they were impressed with Uber's service during a recent visit to Washington and would like to have it here.

"The cars were clean, I knew the name of the driver, the model and color of the vehicle, and where he was on local streets," Tom LaManna said.

Thomas Wolfinger, a Philadelphia public schoolteacher who drove for Uber at the Jersey Shore last summer, said he made $1,200 on the Fourth of July weekend and would like to supplement his salary in Philadelphia.

"If I could pick people up in Philadelphia, it would be more lucrative for me and beneficial for the people," he said.

Other Uber drivers said they get advice from Uber to stay out of Philadelphia but to work the suburbs, especially around colleges on the Main Line.

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