Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

transportation:

Legislative commission greenlights ride-hailing regulations

Uber

Mary Altaffer / AP

In this Wednesday, March 18, 2015, photo, the Uber app displays on a smartphone vehicles available for a pickup in downtown Manhattan.

Drivers for Uber and Lyft could be on the road in Las Vegas within a month after the Legislative Commission signed off on new rules for the ride-hailing industry Monday.

Some legislative leaders are cheering the news. "Many of us would like to see (ride-hailing) companies operating in Nevada by the end of August," Senate Majority Leader Michael Roberson said.

No ridesharing companies have applied to operate in Nevada yet, but Nevada Transportation Authority chairman Andrew Mackay said he expects applications to start rolling in "in a few days."

Once an application is filed, the transportation authority has 30 days to review and issue a permit, although legislators at today's meeting said they hope it won't take that long.

Bruce Breslow, director of the Department of Business and Industry, which oversees the Nevada Transportation Authority, said the applications would be processed "as soon as possible, but not later than 30 days."

The comments came during a hearing today where a panel of legislators reviewed the regulations being put in place for the ride-hailing industry.

Although legislators expressed concerns on several issues, including a proposed $300,000 application fee for ride-hailing companies (the highest fee of any state where Uber, Lyft and their competitors operate), the legislative panel signed off on the regulations, clearing the way for final approval by the Nevada Transportation Authority at its Sept. 11 meeting.

If a ride-hailing company successfully completes its application process and receives a permit before Sept. 11, it could begin operating immediately under temporary regulations passed by the transportation authority earlier this summer.

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