Informal Uber Probe Finds Many Drivers Not Licensed In Md.

OCEAN CITY — Since the first Ocean City Uber vehicle appeared on the app-based ride service last May, there has been an ongoing debate about how or if Uber should be held to the same standards as traditional taxi cabs.

Last week, the Maryland Public Service Commission met with resort officials to try and explain how the city could enforce state regulations that focus on Transportation Network Companies (TNCs) like Uber and Lyft. While state regulations do consider TNC’s “common carriers,” the state also requires drivers to obtain a PSC license before working for Uber. In addition, local law enforcement agencies were assured that Title 13 of the law would allow local jurisdictions to enforce violations of local laws by Uber drivers in addition to the mandated complaint to the PSC about TNC vehicles that must be filed by the department.

Still, the main bit of concern that seems to be hanging in the balance is whether the rules and regulations will have any impact on what some in the taxi cab industry have called a “wild wild west” landscape on the city streets.

“What’s going to stop a guy from coming down to Ocean City from New Jersey or Pennsylvania and just turning on the app and picking people up in Ocean City all weekend?,” questioned Taxi Taxi owner Ralph DeAngelus. “They are coming into our town and just picking people up, making money that they take back to their own communities, and no one is stopping them.”

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