City Council Makes Way for Ride-hailing Companies in Birmingham

The Birmingham City Council voted today on revisions to the city’s transportation code which would allow ride-hailing companies such as Uber and Lyft to operate in the city. The council voted 7 to 1 in favor of the changes. Councilwoman Valerie Abbott voted against them. Councilwoman Kim Rafferty abstained.

An amendment was added which requires the city to evaluate ride-hailing companies after six months. The vote comes more than a year after the council and Uber began negotiations.

Talks that started in summer 2014 broke down over issues of permits, insurance and background checks for drivers. A new round of negotiations reached an agreement in November but the council twice delayed voting on the measure. The first time was because the council canceled a meeting for lack of a quorum and then at a subsequent meeting the ordinance did not win enough support from council members to put it on the agenda.

The Birmingham Business Journal reports Uber could begin expanding into the city in the next few weeks.

Mountain Brook is the first Birmingham area municipality to allow ride-hailing companies to operate. The city council there approved an ordinance just before the Thanksgiving holiday. Homewood passed a similar measure Monday.