Ride-hailing service Uber will soon be operating in New Braunfels, the popular recreation and retirement town of around 70,000 about 50 miles southwest of Austin.
The New Braunfels City Council voted unanimously Monday night to include transportation network companies in its ordinance that until that point regulated only taxi drivers, according to a report in the New Braunfels Herald-Zeitung.
The ordinance requires all drivers to undergo a screening process and audits, have a set amount of commercial liability insurance coverage, and allow digital tracking of all rides.
The new regulations also require payment for a 12-month permit from both taxi companies and TNCs to offset city administrative costs, the Herald reported.
Uber’s general manager in Central Texas, David Brightman, said via a press release that he was pleased with decision.
New Braunfels is the 12th city in Texas to permit ride-hailing apps to operate under specific regulations in their cities ; others are Fort Worth, Lubbock, San Antonio, and San Marcos.
Uber and similar company Lyft no longer operate in Austin after a high-profile election in which residents voted against a proposal to roll back the cities regulations requiring driver fingerprinting. The group advocating for the proposal, Ridesharing Works for Austin, spent approximately $10 million campaigning for passage of the failed initiative.