Citations, vehicle impoundment cases tied to Uber concluded
The Nevada Transportation Authority on Thursday wrapped up the adjudication of 24 citations and vehicle impoundment cases connected to the illegal operation of the Uber Technologies ride-sharing app.
At the authority board’s monthly meeting, the three members unanimously approved in one vote the findings of hearing officers that reviewed each case.
The 24 cases involving Uber drivers and their vehicles was nearly half of the month’s cases involving unlicensed drivers offering motor transport in violation of state statutes.
Uber officials, who directed operations in Las Vegas, Reno and Carson City between Oct. 23 and Nov. 26, believe the company should not be subject to transportation regulations because it considers itself a technology company that arranges rides through a smartphone app and are not the transporters.
Regulators think otherwise.
Authority investigators issued citations to 15 drivers for violating transportation regulations and nine of those drivers had their vehicles impounded.
Commissioners ordered fines of $2,500, $2,000 of which would be suspended if the driver is not caught violating regulations for a year and the payment of the other $500 is made promptly.
On the impoundments, fines ranged from $250 to $700, based on whether the driver had been licensed by the authority in the past and presumably aware of the transportation regulations.
In some of the cases, drivers were cited after an undercover investigator for the Transportation Authority ordered a ride through the app.
Separately, Uber on Thursday released results of a study by Jonathan Hall, the head of policy research for Uber, and Alan Krueger, an economics professor at Princeton University.
The study, using a survey of 601 contracted Uber drivers, was the first research using company data and viewpoints of Uber driver.
The study showed that of all the former taxi drivers now driving for Uber, 59 percent say their income has increased since joining Uber and 24 percent say it has stayed the same. Uber drivers say they make an average $19 an hour.
About three-quarters of former cab drivers working for Uber say they made the move because they wanted to set their own schedules and drive when they wanted.
None of the 601 drivers surveyed in the study worked for Uber in Nevada.
Contact reporter Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Find him on Twitter: @RickVelotta