AUSTIN, TX -- The Lyft driver arrested last week of drunk driving while transporting a passenger in Austin has a history of drunk driving, despite company policy safeguards in place to prevent the hiring of those convicted of such offenses.

Last week, Lyft passenger Alex Grant posted a harrowing account of what was described as a ride from hell. In his online narrative, Grant described how his driver, Allen Edmonds, braked abruptly at a green light and then tried changing lanes at an intersection before being pulled over by police on suspicion of DWI at Parmer Lane near the MoPac Expressway.

"When he leaned over he smelled really heavily of beer," Grant later told television station KVUE. "I did watch him do the sobriety test. It looked like he failed it pretty hard." According to Observer, a business and tech website, it wasn't the first time Edmonds has failed a sobriety test. According to police records, he was arrested for DWI and possession of a controlled substance in 2004 -- charges for which he spent two days in jail.

Still, he was eligible to be a Lyft driver because potential hires are only ineligible if they've been convicted of a DUI or drug-related offenses in the last seven years. The Lyft ride was harrowing, but brief. Edmonds transported his passenger a mere three miles before he was pulled over on March 8.

Company spokeswoman Alexandra LaManna said the company has a zero-tolerance stance as it relates to drug and alcohol use among its drivers, and the company does not tolerate behavior that puts passengers at risk.

"Upon learning of this incident, we permanently removed the driver's access to Lyft," LaManna told the Austin American-Statesman..

Edmonds has since been released from the Travis County Jail, but his ride-sharing days appear to be over. As for Grant, the passenger, Lyft offered him a voucher for five free rides -- up to a maximum $25 value -- to make up for his brief, yet hellish, ride.