EDITORIAL: Ride-hailing and rule-breaking

Since Uber and Lyft received authority to operate in Nevada, via a bill passed by the 2015 Legislature and signed by Gov. Brian Sandoval, the ride-hailing companies have been in the crosshairs of the previously protected monopoly taxicab business. Last week, that led to the revelation of an undercover operation to expose Uber and Lyft drivers agreeing to illegal passenger pickups at last month’s MAGIC show.

It’s an absolutely worthwhile pursuit to prevent off-the-books rides, for myriad reasons, not the least of which is safety. But the pot calling the kettle black doesn’t make the pot any less black.

As reported by the Review-Journal’s Richard Velotta, at least 10 drivers for Uber or Lyft were caught on video agreeing to off-platform cash transactions, which are illegal and deny the ride-sharing companies their cut of fares. Private investigator David DuCharme carried out the undercover operation financed by Brent Bell, president of Bell Transportation, which operates Whittlesea Blue and Henderson Cab companies. On Feb. 18, the last day of the Men’s Apparel Guild in California convention at the Las Vegas Convention Center, Mr. DuCharme took seven off-platform rides, paying $20 cash each time. The night before, there were two illegal rides, and a total of eight drivers were implicated in the two-day operation.

To be sure, both drivers and passengers take tremendous risks when they agree to such arrangements, because neither party is covered by insurance in the event of an accident. It’s an extremely stupid thing to do for the few dollars extra it might cost the passenger in fees or the driver in revenue.

However, to be just as clear, there are no angels in this continuing battle between ride-hailing companies and the taxi industry. If Uber and Lyft opted to hire a private investigator to ride around in cabs for a couple of days and document instances of long-hauling — whereby cab drivers inflate the fare by intentionally taking passengers on longer routes to their destinations — they could have a trove of videos posted within a week.

Don’t believe that? During a Legislative Commission meeting last month on whether to dismantle the Nevada Taxicab Authority, in the wake of an audit hammering the agency, several drivers testified that some of their peers have been driven to illegally long-hauling customers to make up for lagging pay.

The cab companies’ contention is that Uber and Lyft drivers are awful, terrible lawbreakers. A much more accurate assessment is that, as is the case in many operations, there are going to be some bad actors who need to be rooted out and disciplined, if not outright fired. Until the cab companies can definitively say they have not only stopped long-hauling, but can ensure that it will never happen again, they can’t claim any credibility for standing on higher moral ground.