Several taxicab drivers on Tuesday called on the City Council to impose several mandatory regulations on ride-hailing companies, including FBI fingerprinting, because they said disparity between the rules for taxis and transportation-network companies is unfair.

They cabbies said public safety continues to be in jeopardy because drivers for transportion-network companies, such as Uber and Lyft, aren’t required to be fingerprinted unless they choose to be.

If the city refuses to increase regulations on those companies, the cabbies said, then they want the burden on their own industry reduced.

That may happen, at least in part.

Steven Baum, the San Antonio Police Department’s assistant director who oversees the department’s Ground Transportation Unit, suggested at a Transportation Advisory Committee meeting Monday evening that the city lower fees assessed on taxicabs, limousines and charters.

At the cab drivers’ press conference, Robert Gonzales called for “more transparency” on plans to make permanent the pilot programs under which ride-hailing companies are currently operating. He said requiring TNC drivers, often billed as part-time workers earning extra income on the side, to be fingerprinted by the FBI is important.

“Sooner or later, something is going to happen,” he said. “Someone is going to get raped. Someone is going to get killed.”

He also alleged that the SAPD has covered up crimes committed against passengers by TNC drivers.

SAPD provided the San Antonio Express-News a list of four incidents that mention TNC drivers — none of which resulted in a conviction. In a February incident, a woman alleged that a driver offensively touched or assaulted her and filed charges with the Alamo Heights Police Department. The case was eventually dismissed against the driver, who had no criminal history, because the passenger failed twice to appear in court.

Gonzales on Tuesday called for mandatory fingerprinting of all TNC drivers, along with drug testing and additional transparency. He and others are seeking lists of TNC drivers, their vehicles and insurance coverage. He also said San Antonio should cap the number of TNC drivers and align taxes, permits and other city fees.

Meanwhile, the Texas Attorney General ruled this week that the city of San Antonio could withhold the names of TNC drivers who were voluntarily fingerprinted under the pilot programs approved by the City Council.

The Express-News and other media outlets had sought the names, among other things. The ride-hailing firms submitted letters to the AG in opposition to the release of the information, generally citing exemptions for trade secrets and competitive advantage. The AG sided with the ride-hailing firms.

Hector Garcia, a taxi activist, said he wants “equal treatment for all drivers.” The city, he said, has bent over backwards for the TNCs, and the cabbies want equal treatment — and an increase in the capped number of permits for taxi drivers.

Next month, the City Council is expected to discuss the TNC pilot program and could vote on the matter in November.

jbaugh@express-news.net

Twitter: @jbaugh