Uber expands to Richland, West Richland, but not Pasco

Uber, the controversial ride-hailing service, is now collecting passengers in two of the three Tri-Cities with the recent addition of Richland to its service territory. It has also added West Richland to its service list.

To recap, Uber drivers may take passengers to any destination they wish, but can only collect them from jurisdictions where it is legally authorized or where local codes do not address that type of business.

Uber began operating in Kennewick shortly before Christmas. Richland passed Uber-friendly rules at the same time but the company only just now secured the proper business license, effective March 1.

Pasco has so far refused to enable Uber service after the city council couldn’t reach a consensus about whether Uber drivers should be subject to fingerprint checks.

For now, that means would-be users can’t summon an Uber ride at the Tri-Cities Airport. Traditional taxi service is available on a limited basis.

Beyond the Tri-Cities, Uber is under heightened scrutiny after the New York Times reported it uses software called Greyball to deceive regulators about its operations.

This story was originally published March 8, 2017 at 1:35 PM with the headline "Uber expands to Richland, West Richland, but not Pasco."