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back to article Super Cali goes ballistic, Uber Pool is bogus: Ride sharing biz is illegal in the state, says regulator

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has warned Lyft, Sidecar, and Uber that their ride-sharing services are technically illegal under the state's licensing laws. All three companies are piloting schemes whereby users can sign up to share a ride to a location and get charged a reduced fee by the driver. But the …

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  1. Anonymous Coward
    Facepalm

    It wasn't supposed to be this way

    So the Enviros (who pretty much run the CA government) have for years been decrying the fact that too many cars in CA have but one passenger. Fair enough. Along comes something that could drastically reduce the problem, but wait! Turns out that same CA government has been earning their pay by outlawing just such a scheme. D'oh!

    The obvious fix would be to rescind that law, but it's just so much easier to make new laws, like making it illegal to drive alone (unless you have the right connections of course).

    ;-/

    10 8 Reply
    1. Mark 85
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      Re: It wasn't supposed to be this way

      Have an upvote. I think what we're seeing is a variation of the Gore effect: "Do as I say and not as I do. I'm smarter than the lot of you and know what needs to be done."

      CA has always had that attitude. From the yoga and veggie eaters to the politicals....

      9 4 Reply
    2. FreemonSandlewould
      Reply Icon

      Re: It wasn't supposed to be this way

      So global warming is this big threat the libtards in Cali tell us to send mo mo mo MOOO money. So then when something comes along to help the supposed crisis they say no no no NOOOO it will cost US money.

      Makes you kind of think that global warming is just a scam to grab money. Humm nahhh couldn't be? Could it?

      With out a doubt.

      6 9 Reply
      1. Mark 85
        Reply Icon

        Re: It wasn't supposed to be this way

        Who knows what's real in that State? There's a reason it's called "the land of fruits, nuts, and honeys".

        And before someone beats me up for the word "fruit", see the first definition: http://onlineslangdictionary.com/meaning-definition-of/fruit

        1 0 Reply
    3. big_D Silver badge
      Reply Icon

      Re: It wasn't supposed to be this way

      car sharing isn't illegal.

      Car sharing without recompense or to cover 'gas' is allowed, as per the story. Car sharing for profit, with a licence is legal. Car sharing for profit without a licence is illegal.

      It is the same here in Germany. There are a lot of platforms, where people wanting a lift from A to B can register and drivers going from A to B can then pick up passengers, who pay a contribution towards the fuel. It is very popular.

      3 1 Reply
      1. Anonymous Coward
        Reply Icon
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: It wasn't supposed to be this way

        "Car sharing for profit without a licence is illegal."

        And pray tell why is that? Is there a legit reason, or is it just protectionism via corruption? If I want to start a business that lets people reliably share rides and save money while reducing congestion, what purpose is served by being licensed other than to enrich the government? Remember, this isn't like those freelance taxi guys; I would be serving the same people over and over. If my service is lacking, they will stop utilizing my service.

        In other words: "I don't need no steenking license!!!"

        3 2 Reply
        1. big_D Silver badge
          Reply Icon

          Re: It wasn't supposed to be this way

          "Car sharing for profit without a licence is illegal."

          And pray tell why is that? Is there a legit reason, or is it just protectionism via corruption?

          Because there us a law, which was brought in, presumably, to protect consuners - that is the reason why we have laws for taxis and buses in Germany.

          It means that the companies that run the taxis and buses have to ensure they have the correct insurance, that their vehicles are safe and that the drivers reach a minimum standard and are vetted, and in the case of taxis, that they have a calibrated meter, so that they cannot overcharge.

          0 0 Reply
      2. Yet Another Anonymous coward Silver badge
        Reply Icon

        Re: It wasn't supposed to be this way

        >Car sharing for profit without a licence is illegal.

        This case goes one further, it's car sharing with individual passengers paying different fares to go to different stops. That is known as a bus.

        It's like my plan for people who have never met to get together at an airport and share a ride in a plane, each paying a bit toward the trip. Smoking is allowed, as are electronic devices and you can take all the liquids, sharp knives and guns you want without having to do all the TSA stuff because we aren't an airline we are just ride sharing a plane.

        2 0 Reply
        1. waldo kitty
          Reply Icon
          Coat

          Re: It wasn't supposed to be this way

          >Car sharing for profit without a licence is illegal.

          This case goes one further, it's car sharing with individual passengers paying different fares to go to different stops. That is known as a bus.

          really? all the city bus transportation rides i've ever taken charge one flat fee for riding the bus no matter how far you were going... some even gave "continuance" passes for use on the next bus you might have to get on at a transfer station since you had already paid the fee for the ride to your destination...

          my coat because i've got another bus to catch...

          0 1 Reply
          1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge
            Reply Icon
            Joke

            Re: It wasn't supposed to be this way

            "all the city bus transportation rides i've ever taken charge one flat fee "

            That sounds like the sort of thing pinko commie socialists might do. Proper capitalists will charge by the journey length otherwise those only doing short trips are subsidising the ones doing longer trips. I guess we'll have to assume that you live in some socialist Yuropeen country and not the Good 'ole USofA.

            0 0 Reply
            1. Yet Another Anonymous coward Silver badge
              Reply Icon

              Re: It wasn't supposed to be this way

              Here is the efficient capital market of the USA we are installing an oyster card type system and security gates to replace the flat rate tickets with no barriers + occasional ticket inspectors (basically honour system)

              It will cost $30M/year to operate (it's being sub-contrcted to the local G4 subsidiary so there will be no surpises) but will save an estimate $3M in fare dodging.

              0 0 Reply
    4. Trigonoceps occipitalis
      Reply Icon

      Re: It wasn't supposed to be this way

      Car Sharing 101

      Have car pool lanes.

      Ban an easy, simple way to form casual car pools.

      That works.

      2 4 Reply
      1. Mark 85
        Reply Icon

        Re: It wasn't supposed to be this way

        You have to remember also that at one time, LA had some of the best bus lines/service in the country. Then "big auto" and "big oil" got involved and freeways were built and the buses were allowed to die off. Half-hearted attempts to revive them have failed. The folks down there scream about "save the planet" but continue to drive their big SUV's and refuse to support mass transportation.

        1 0 Reply
        1. Anonymous Coward
          Reply Icon
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: It wasn't supposed to be this way

          "You have to remember also that at one time, LA had some of the best bus lines/service in the country."

          And before that, they had great streetcar lines, which were killed off by the busses. At least that's the story I heard. That meme even got into a movie, "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?". Fact is, those LA rail lines had a nickname, "Old Death and Destruction," due to the many people killed in car/train collisions. As for the busses, they are in no position to properly compete, due mainly to the "Buy American" provisions attached to most govt subsidies which prop up nearly all U.S. bus lines.

          www.buses.org/files/Report08.pdf

          0 0 Reply
          1. Yet Another Anonymous coward Silver badge
            Reply Icon

            Re: It wasn't supposed to be this way

            People still get killed in car/train coliisions, mostly due to the word Stop being so close to a Californian word meaning, "drive straight through if there are no cops around". It was recently proposed that the soln to this was for cars to have the right of way at crossings and have the train stop for them!

            The redline was an even murkier story than in who Framed roger Rabbit. A property developer specialised in building quick and cheap on distant agricultural land. He promised a bus/trolley service to get building permits and attract buyers. As soon as the houses were sold the service would be discontinued and moved to the next development. Since the builders wanted to work cheap and they new the lines would be torn up again in a year they had an "interesting" attitude to the engineering aspects of building a rapid transit system.

            1 0 Reply
  2. Tom 35

    Except for ones you ignore.

    Unless and until the Legislature modifies §5401, the Commission must enforce state law.

    2 0 Reply
    1. Anonymous Coward
      Reply Icon
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Except for ones you ignore. (Unless it's a Federal law)

      So the Commission is so righteous that it must enforce STATE LAW. (unless it's FEDERAL so enforcement of Immigration and Drug Laws are off the table)

      0 0 Reply
  3. Adam 1

    +1 for article title of the year.

    4 0 Reply
    1. DavCrav
      Reply Icon

      "+1 for article title of the year."

      In which case you should +1 the original authors of the headline, The Sun, of which this one is an homage/copy. It was after a football game where Inverness Caledonian Thistle beat Celtic, which is unlikely.

      "Super Caley go ballistic, Celtic are atrocious".

      0 3 Reply
  4. frank ly

    More

    They say that the legailty is something quite atrocious

    Those Californian liberals, they always sound precocious

    ......

    4 0 Reply
  5. Turtle

    Wondering.

    "But if you're going to make a business out of such services, California lawmakers want to get involved, and the letters to Lyft, Sidecar, and Uber will put a serious crimp in the three companies' plans to expand their contract taxi services into the ride-sharing arena."

    Doesn't seem right to me. Isn't it true that any business, organization, enterprise, or endeavor that uses the internet in some way is automatically exempt from all laws?

    2 1 Reply
    1. Velv
      Reply Icon
      Boffin

      Re: Wondering.

      "Isn't it true that any business, organization, enterprise, or endeavor that uses the internet in some way is automatically exempt from all laws?"

      It's worse - everything on the Internet is behind a Schrödinger field - it is both exempt from the law and under US legal jurisdiction at the same time irrespective of the country.

      It's only when someone lifts the lid do we find out if it still responds to a ping.

      0 0 Reply
  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Super Cali goes ballistic, Uber Pool is bogus

    Sounds like that long word from Mary Poppins. Next there will be laws to outlaw the leasing of umbrellas used for mass transportation.

    0 0 Reply

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