Story by Hamish Broome •
CHEEKY UBER drivers using the Byron Bay taxi rank or picking up passengers who hail them in the street are blatantly breaking the law, according to a Byron Bay rival company of the US dotcom.
Local company GoByron says Queensland-based Uber drivers making cross-border trips to cash in on the weekend demand for “ridesharing” are also operating illegally unless they have a NSW drivers’ licence.
“Even if a car is registered in Queensland, it can’t pick up someone in Byron and take them to Queensland (unless) they have a NSW driver’s licence or drivers’ authority,” GoByron’s Matthew Dokter said.
Mr Dokter said ridesharing had been stuck in legal limbo for some time but that changed in December when the NSW Government moved to legalise it.
However, drivers must meet several requirements to be eligible, including having appropriate insurance, licences, and criminal and medical checks.
It is also illegal for rideshare drivers to either use taxi ranks or be hailed on the street – they can only legally be booked through a ridesharing app.
GoByron recently launched its own custom app in an effort to tap into the growing demand for Uber-style services, both from drivers and riders.
The company also rebranded itself, combining two longstanding companies including Byron Bay Taxis and Byron Bay Limousines plus its new ridesharing service under one banner.