SEA ISLE CITY – About 24 Uber drivers appeared in Sea Isle City Municipal Court Aug. 18 with legal counsel to face charges of illegally picking up and discharging passengers in this resort.
Drivers had been observed by police for violating the city’s traffic laws and were stopped on probable cause as they had allegedly been seen illegally stopping for riders and discharging them, and not observing regulations in place for taxis.
In a plea bargain with the court, the drivers agreed to pay fines in the range of $200-$300 each.
In a statement sent to the Herald, a group representing itself as speaking for the Uber drivers wrote, (We are) “picking up riders from bars and clubs and taking them safely home. This is the thanks we get from a city that produces more drunk people than the next 10 towns put together. Therefore, in recognition of this marvelous achievement, United Drivers hereby presents the leaders of Sea Isle with the Grim City Award of the Year.”
Uber is an app-based service that links drivers with requesting passengers through software that keeps track of vehicle locations to rapidly respond to riders’ needs.
Each municipality, city, county or state in the nation, and in parallel in foreign nations, has its own method of dealing with Uber.
Some have outright banned the service; others have enacted legislation to allow it. Still, others turn a blind eye to the service as it competes with highly-regulated and licensed taxis and other public transport.
City Business Administrator George Savastano, representing the municipality’s position, responded to the Herald’s request for comment, “About two years ago we met with representatives of Uber to see if we could find a way to work together. They said they did not want to be regulated and did not want to pursue any further discussion with the city.
“We don’t want to play Big Brother but as congested as Sea Isle City streets and thoroughfares are we can’t simply tell our police force to not enforce the laws on the books that are there for public safety and that the taxis and jitneys are observing.”
The drivers’ statement urged readers, through a Facebook petition, to “Support the effort to stop Sea Isle City from using it’s (sic) police force to aggressively target Uber drivers for regulatory violations.
“The police need to be focusing on keeping streets safe for residents and tourists from drunk drivers, not wasting their time chasing Uber drivers down, who are only trying to keep the streets safe too.
“It’s a fact that DUI violations have decreased dramatically since the inception of Uber. Our goal is to document a strong show of support and create public awareness for Uber drivers trying to work in Sea Isle, who are doing a great service trying to keep both residents and visitors safe by keeping drunk drivers off the roads and providing easy access to and from the city’s venues and businesses for all.
“This policy by Sea Isle is causing many Uber drivers to shy away from the area completely, which will lead to even more problems and hurt Sea Isle’s bottom line.
“Help us to try and shift the city’s current position of basically kicking Uber drivers out altogether. Let’s show the city, like Philadelphia; they need to relax their regulations in the name of safety and public service.”
In rebuttal, Savastano further commented, “The public does not want Sea Isle City to have our laws violated with no repercussions because our ordinances have been enacted for the welfare and safety of all. The Uber drivers have put forward an absurd argument that is not supported by residents or by ordinance.
“However, I suspect there will continue to be Uber drivers trying to do business in Sea Isle City although I sincerely hope this is not the case because they will face the same penalties.”
Many jurisdictions throughout the nation and around the world are considering how to regulate and address the services Uber provides. New Jersey currently does not have any statewide law on the books that controls or even standardizes policy regarding Uber.
“If we have such statewide legislation, Sea Isle City certainly would follow it,” concluded Savastano.
United Drivers did not respond to a request for comment from the Herald sent to its email address.
To contact Camille Sailer, email csailer@cmcherald.com.
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