Paris protest against Uber turns violent
PARIS – Cars overturned. Roads blockaded with flaming tires. That’s what happens when the U.S. sharing economy tangles with French protectionism.
Hundreds of French taxi drivers took to the streets Thursday in sometimes violent protest against Uber, blocking access to major airports and train stations, and attacking vehicles suspected of working for the popular car service, which they accuse of stealing their livelihoods.
The violence follows weeks of escalating tension over the San Francisco-based company’s decision to continue offering its low-cost UberPop service despite an October law that bars companies from connecting passengers with unregistered drivers.
French taxi unions accuse UberPop of ignoring repeated court rulings and complain that police have turned a blind eye to the operation. The country’s interior minister, Bernard Cazeneuve, said Thursday that the service must be shut down, citing the “serious public order disturbances and development of this illegal activity.”
The company has appealed the judgments and says it is waiting for a final decision from France’s constitutional court, which began deliberating on the matter Tuesday.
Thomas Meister, an Uber spokesman, accused Cazeneuve of disregarding the legal process. “The way things work in a state of law is that it’s for the justice to judge whether something is illegal or not,” Meister told reporters.
Uber has faced repeated pushback from taxi operators and regulators as it has expanded into more than 300 cities across six continents. In an attempt to win over skeptical local authorities, the company has touted its potential to create jobs, reduce congestion and boost tax revenue.
Chief Executive Travis Kalanick made the case in January that many taxis in Europe operate “off-grid” and that Uber could be a way to bring them into compliance with local safety regulations and tax obligations.
The argument, however, does not appear to have swayed many European governments or taxi companies. More than a dozen lawsuits have been filed in recent months in countries across the continent, where some analysts say the company is in danger of being shut down or becoming so entangled in legislation as to be neutered.
French taxi drivers complain that services such as Uber have an unfair advantage because their drivers don’t pay for licenses that can cost up to $270,000. Some don’t pay taxes and social charges, either, according to French officials. Cazeneuve berated Uber as a company that “with arrogance applies none of the rules of law of the republic.”