#WhyIRide Trends Ahead Of City Council Vote On Rideshare Rules
By Stephen Gossett in News on Jun 21, 2016 8:42PM
Some Twitter users took to their accounts Tuesday afternoon to vocally defend rideshare service like Uber and Lyft, which could face new regulations with the City Council set to vote Wednesday on a much-debated, highly contentious bill. The companies have threatened to pull out of Chicago if the Council moves forward.
#WhyIRide was trending on Twitter starting early afternoon, with more than 1,600 tweets as of 2:40 p.m. It was frequently coupled with the hashtag #ChiCouncil.
The latest version of the bill reflects a recent capitulation by Ald. Anthony Beale, who has led the charge for regulation. Beale agreed to shelve the opposition's biggest point of contention, a required fingerprinting process for background checks, while a six-month study investigated their success. He also faces pressure for the administration to back down on demands to require drivers be drug-screened.
A much toothier version of the bill passed the Transportation Committee last Friday.
Political action committees representing taxi industries have contributed more than $50,000 to 13 aldermen, according to reports. Meanwhile, Uber has faced criticism for its billion-dollar "money grab" from investors. They has also been taken to task by pro-taxi organizations for not being truthful about claims of support to underserved neighborhoods.
"Uber’s own recommendation to hit [incentives] is to skip the South Side, skip the West Side, stick to the Loop, Lincoln Park, Wicker Park, and Lakeview," David Kreisman, of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, told Chicagoist.