Uber, Lyft will be allowed to operate at McCarran

Ride-hailing companies Uber and Lyft will be allowed to operate at McCarran International Airport and when they do, they'll have designated pickup areas for customers to find their rides.

Just don't expect that to happen right away — service at the airport isn't expected to begin until late October. Transportation network companies expect to begin operating once the Nevada Transportation Authority approves regulations on Sept. 11.

Clark County officials have scheduled a workshop meeting for 3 p.m. Tuesday at the Clark County Government Center to outline how ride-hailing companies' contracted drivers can get business licenses and how and where they'll be expected to operate at the airport.

Jacqueline Holloway, director of the Clark County Department of Business Licensing, will explain the process of acquiring a license and Rosemary Vassiliadis, director of the Clark County Department of Aviation, will explain procedures at McCarran.

Proposals outlined Tuesday won't be made official until they're approved in an ordinance, expected to be considered by the Clark County Commission at its Oct. 20 meeting.

Vassiliadis explained in a telephone interview where Uber and Lyft drivers will be when service is allowed at the airport.

"It's taking a little bit of time because the state has created a whole new category of transportation provider," Vassiliadis said. "It's brand new and there's a lot of talk about about."

The most important discussion, at least as far as Uber and Lyft customers are concerned, is that the companies will be allowed to be there. Those and other ride-hailing companies have been banned from several airports nationwide, including Los Angeles International which is close to developing a plan to bring them in after a close City Council committee vote last week.

At McCarran, Uber and Lyft customers will be allowed to be dropped off at the airport's departures curbs at both Terminal 1 and Terminal 3 at various doors leading to airline ticket counters.

Pickups will be a little different. Vassiliadis explained that customers will be required to meet their drivers at numbered stalls in terminal parking areas near valet parking. At Terminal 1, that will be on parking garage level 2M and at Terminal 3, it will be near valet parking at Level V of the parking garage.

"We'll start with 32 stalls, but we have room for growth," Vassiliadis said.

Ride-hailing companies will have to follow specific procedures for pickups that won't affect their customers. Drivers who want to provide rides from the airport would have to go to a staging area in a lot near Terminal 3 currently used as overflow for limousines and shuttles. Once they've arrived there, they'll be placed in their company's app queue and will be able to be hired in the order in which they arrive. Once a customer has made contact with the company through the app, the driver would proceed to the pickup area, either at Terminal 1 or 3 to meet the customer.

Checking in to the queue will also flag the airport of a driver's presence so the company can be charged an airport use fee.

Vassiliadis said the signage, lane painting and tracking system technology to monitor the companies will cost about $150,000. The companies will be required to pay a one-time fee of between $45,000 and $50,000 to conduct business at the airport. Vassiliadis said for now, only Uber and Lyft have met with airport officials about pickups and drop-offs at the airport, but that one or two other companies may sign up in the future.

Contact reporter Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Find @RickVelotta on Twitter.

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