Council's Development Committee to Hold Hearing on Transportation Options
Columbus City Councilmember Michelle M. Mills, chair of the
Development Committee, will hold a public meeting to discuss proposed changes
to the City’s vehicle for hire code. The purpose of the hearing is to solicit
public comment about an emerging sector of the vehicle for hire industry,
peer-to-peer transportation network services such as Uber, Lyft and Sidecar.
The proposed changes will address the introduction of these services into
Columbus’ existing vehicle for hire industry and how they will be regulated by
the City.
Specifically, the proposed changes will modify existing
Chapter 585 of the vehicle for hire code, and enact new Chapters 588 and 590:
1) Chapter 585,
titled “Vehicle for Hire Board,” will be updated to be consistent with and
incorporate references to the two new code chapters.
2) Chapter 588,
titled “Peer-to-Peer Transportation Network Company,” will be enacted to
establish regulations and licensing requirements for peer-to-peer
transportation network companies.
3) Chapter 590,
titled “Peer-to-Peer Transportation Network Drivers’ License,” will be enacted
to establish regulations and licensing requirements for drivers who work for
peer-to-peer transportation network companies.
Unrelated to the above code changes proposed to address
peer-to-peer transportation network services, minor changes will also be made
to five chapters in the Business Regulation and Licensing Code, Title 5.
Chapters 501, 505, 587, 589 and 591 will be updated in small ways to ensure
consistency:
1) Chapter 501,
titled “Licensing and Regulation Generally,” will be amended to remove
references to recently repealed chapters and incorporate reference to all of
the current chapters in Title 5. Chapter 501 includes general requirements that
are meant to apply to all chapters in Title 5; however, it has not been updated
for more than ten years.
2) Chapter 505,
titled “Board of License Appeals and Procedure,” will be amended to include a
reference to Chapter 501.
3) Chapter 587,
titled “Vehicle for Hire Owner’s License,” will be amended to allow the
Director of Public Safety to transfer or issue new Vehicle for Hire Owner’s
licenses.
4) Chapter 589,
titled “Vehicle for Hire Driver’s License,” will be amended to allow the
Director of Public Safety to transfer or issue new Vehicle for Hire Driver’s
licenses.
5) Chapter 591,
titled “Taxicabs,” will be amended to correct a reference to a definition found
in Chapter 585.
Date: Tuesday, March 11, 2014
Time: 5:00
Location:
City Hall
Columbus City Council Chambers
90 West Broad Street
Columbus, OH 43215
Public testimony will be accepted. General rules of speaking before Council
apply. Anyone wishing to address City
Council on this matter must fill out a speaker slip before 5:30 pm on the day
of the hearing. The meeting will
broadcast live on CTV, Columbus’ cable access channel 3.