Uber Drops Service In Kansas, Says Bill Makes Operation "Impossible"

Uber pushes and pushes and pushes and sometimes, when all that pushing fails to go the way it wants, it gives in to legal pressure. Such has ended up being the case in Kansas, where the ridesharing service has pointed toward a recent bill as the reason it will be leaving the state, saying it is the only state in the US where Uber has been forced to leave because of "unbalanced, backward regulations." It suggests, though, that it might be back in the future.

Uber has been operating in Kansas for about a year, and according to the company it has seen success there, where both drivers and riders use the service on a regular basis to make or save cash, depending on which end of the spectrum one lies. Says the ridesharing service, "tens of thousands of rides" have been given in the state.

A bill that would make life difficult for Uber and others like it — SB 117 — surfaced, and for a while all looked well as the Governor vetoed it. However, the state's lawmakers have since overturned that veto, and says Uber, the bill "make it impossible ... to operate in the state."

Uber wasted no time in calling it quits in the region, saying that at about 2:45PM after the vote it ceased its operations in the state. It says that by passing the bill, Kansas has destroyed a bunch of jobs, gotten rid of on-demand rides, and became the first state to pass such "backward regulations". Specifics on why the bill makes operation impossible weren't detailed, however.

SOURCE: Uber Blog