Uber Drivers Welcome New City Council Ordinances While Some Taxi Drivers Feel More Needs To Be Done

CHATTANOOGA,TN, (WDEF)-Chattanooga City Council passed new transportation ordinances for Uber and traditional taxi drivers by a vote of 6 to 2 Tuesday night.

There will also be a further review of the legislation in the coming weeks which was initially drafted by councilmen Ken Smith and Chris Anderson.

Chris Anderson, City Council District 7, "With the new ordinances it’s going to regulate them and allow them legally to operate in the city of Chattanooga. We will have provisions for background checks for the drivers, vehicle inspections of the vehicles or for how the fares are calculated, things like that, that make it a good ride for consumers and it will stimulate competition."

Taxi drivers say the new ordinances separate Uber and regular cab drivers, but many feel they are the same service and should be regulated on similar terms.

Philip Mathis, Chattanooga Taxi Driver,"We have one driver even, well some people come up and say he was asking to tell everyone to just call his regular number not use the Uber app, we do the same thing here, we give out business cards."

Uber drivers here in Chattanooga say their service is different to regular cabs and believe they have a major role to play here in the Chattanooga community.

Kimberly Hughes,Chattanooga Uber Driver, "It’s a wonderful company. They teach us to be very professional, and it’s a good service. We tried to provide more of an experience than just a ride."

Russell Waldrop, Chattanooga Uber Driver, "An Uber vehicle can be at the location very very quickly as opposed to cabs that can take a little bit longer, not always, but I think it will the young college kids maybe not drink and drive."

Chattanooga cab owners are also demanding Uber drivers carry a million dollar insurance policy for their passengers.

Uber drivers say their service provides insurance as soon as a passenger is inside their "vehicle for hire" and that once the passenger leaves their own personal insurance kicks back in.