Colton Totland

Silverton Appeal Tribune

Ever since Uber made its debut in Oregon with a free ice cream spectacle in July, the $18.5 billion ride-sharing service out of San Francisco has been at odds with Salem officials about licensing laws in the city.

The service, which connects drivers with ride-seekers via a smart phone app, received a warning from city officials on July 30 that anyone offering rides for money in Salem must obtain the same licenses as taxi drivers.

Since then, Uber hired Gallatin Public Affairs — a public relations firm out of Portland, a city that happens to prohibit Uber — to represent them in negotiations aimed at changing Salem's city code. Glen Gross, urban planning administrator, said they met once two weeks ago, and a spokeswoman for Uber said they will meet again this coming week after Labor Day.

This dialogue has not stopped Uber from operating, technically illegally, throughout Salem. In fact, it's quite the opposite; on Aug. 7, Uber extended the promotional deal that accompanied its launch, and now is crediting first-time users' accounts with $50 toward rides around the city.

So on Friday, I decided to take a ride. After downloading the phone app and providing my card information, I hailed an Uber car outside the newsroom with the press of a button. It arrived in four minutes.

The driver, who wished to remain anonymous due to the ongoing discussion between Uber and the city, took me on a short drive to the Broadway Coffeehouse at 1300 Broadway NE, a cost of $6. Gross said that city officials will take action against any unlicensed service providers, including Uber drivers.

Along the way, the driver said he was among the first people to apply for a job with Uber when the ads appeared on Craigslist. He said in the past four weeks, he has worked around 15-hour weeks in his personal car.

"The experience has been good for me," he said. "A lot of the users are people who are familiar with the service. Visitors from San Francisco, Seattle — they're all saying they use it all the time."

The ride offered amenities beyond the typical taxi ride, such as a charging station for my iPhone and the option to play music on my phone through the stereo.

"I've got water and drinks there on the side, gums and mints here if you care," he said, adding with a chuckle, "It's the Uber experience."

"One of the attractions of it is it's flexible. It's a good way to defray my costs and put it toward gas," the driver said, noting that he works other jobs and that Uber allows him to offer rides on a schedule entirely up to him.

While the ride went smoothly (we made it to the coffeehouse within minutes), the conflict with Salem's code was apparent from the beginning. The car was unmarked, violating one of the key requirements for anyone offering rides for money. The driver also operated a meter to charge by the mile, an activity that cities regulate to reduce fraudulent activity; namely, running the meter before and/or after the ride.

Perhaps the biggest problem Uber faces in U.S. cities and those around the world, though, is a requirement for 24-hour service. Because Uber drivers set their own schedules, there is no guarantee that the company will always have drivers on the road, something that taxi services are mandated to provide.

In high-demand situations where there are not enough cars, Uber's model encourages drivers to hit the road by allowing them to charge higher fares, a concept known as "surge pricing" (Uber takes 20 percent of the fare regardless). Ultimately, though, it's up to the drivers if they want to offer rides.

And in low-demand situations, common in cities that Uber is new to, a lack of drivers is even more likely. I experienced this first-hand at 1 p.m. on a Friday, far outside peak hours. After requesting Uber service 22 times to no avail, I gave up and called a taxi.

The key distinction that Uber makes is that it is not a taxi service. Eva Behrend, the company's communications director, said the Uber model was never intended to offer around-the-clock service, but instead promote an online sharing economy between those with cars and those without. The company has expanded to 200 cities across 45 countries since its launch in 2009.

"Uber is not the same as a taxi platform. It's not a 24-hour service," Behrend said. "Cities around the world that we work with, most recently Seattle, we work with them so they understand the difference with the platform."

She added that Uber is an opportunity for drivers on their own time to "conduct their own small businesses."

Salem and Portland are far from the only cities to send warnings to or even to outright ban Uber's presence. To help assuage the concerns of lawmakers — Uber currently is targeting cities in Germany despite many bans there similar to Portland — the company on Wednesday hired David Plouffe, a former campaign manager for President Obama, as a vice president of policy and strategy.

Uber also has received an "F" rating from the Better Business Bureau, with 59 complaints in the past 12 months and an additional 29 that are unresolved. Many of the complaints claim poor customer relations, overcharged fare and difficulty obtaining promotional deal credits.

The Oregon Attorney General's consumer protection wing reported no complaints since Uber's arrival last month.

Behrend said she and Uber's general manager, along with Gallatin Public Affairs, will meet with Salem officials this coming week after Labor Day. The aim will be the same: emphasize the difference between Uber and traditional taxi services. In California and Colorado, Uber also has achieved that at the state level, Behrend said.

Glen Gross, the urban planning administrator with the city, said no policy changes have been discussed yet, but said it would be up to Uber to propose any modifications.

"That would really need to come from them. We're of the opinion that our code does apply to them," Gross said. "As far as we're concerned, we have a code in place already."

ctotland@StatesmanJournal.com, (503) 269-2900 or on Twitter @ColtonTotland