DFW Airport Cabbies Lose Bid To Block Uber & Lyft
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NORTH TEXAS (CBSDFW.COM) - Responding to a lawsuit by the Association of Taxicab Operators, a Dallas County judge has refused to issue an emergency block of new regulations that allows car services like UberX and Lyft to pick up passengers at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport.
Some say the decision has set the stage for a bigger fight at a later date. Shawn Stevens, an attorney with the Association of Taxicab Operators, says Uber and Lyft are being allowed to hop over years of regulations. "Taxi cab drivers can't just roam around the airport, waiting and looking for a passenger to pickup. They have to go through a queue," he said.
DFW Airport spokesperson David Magana says the new rules that went into effect August 1, allowing ride-sharing companies to legally operate at the airport, were in response to consumer demand. "We simply opened the door for additional competition, because our customers demanded it, our customers want it. We're more than willing to provide anything that the customers are seeking so long as it is applied fairly, and we tried to do that."
State District Judge Bonnie Lee Goldstein admitted Tuesday there might be issues that need to be addressed down the road, but for now said there isn't enough reason to issue a temporary restraining order.
Despite the hearing being about access, the recent sexual assault charge and arrest of an Uber driver made its way into arguments. Stevens said, "Obviously, something failed if an Uber driver is able to fake his way through and get a City of Dallas operating permit."
Driver Talal Chammout allegedly picked up a woman, who had used the Uber app, and raped her at her home after taking her there. According to investigators, after the car ride, the 56-year-old followed the woman inside without being invited.
Magana said the argument about the alleged Uber sexual assault and permit process doesn't belong in the discussion about the airport access lawsuit. "Once you get a valid permit, from either Fort Worth or Dallas, then you can get a permit to operate at the airport."
In the lawsuit, taxi cab drivers claimed that in addition to it being against the rules, allowing Uber and Lyft to operate would create a "feeding frenzy" for airline passengers.
The suit will continue and Judge Goldstein will hear further arguments at a later date.
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