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MCTA Members at Summer Meeting
The Minnesota Chauffeured Transportation Association (MCTA) met in for its summer quarterly meeting on June 23 in St. Paul. The group had around 20 people in attendance for the dinner meeting, and welcomed two new members: Peter Provost of Propel Event Transportation Management and Michael Kashevatsky of MIK Transportation.
The guest speaker was Laura Roads of the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MNDOT), who spoke on the implementation of the new LM plate law, which MCTA helped pass at the Minnesota state legislature. The new law allows SUVs (15-passenger vehicles with the driver) to have LM plates. She also asked the group for feedback on upcoming revisions to MNDOT’s administrative rules; MCTA will provide formal written feedback as well.
MCTA President Gina Brennan of Corporate Car & Coach attended the National Limousine Association’s Day on the Hill as well as the Association Presidents Summit recently in Washington, D.C. She gave a recap of her meetings and specifically highlighted the Uber/Lyft issues her and other states are facing.
Cullen Sheehan, MCTA’s lobbyist from Lockridge Grindal Nauen, provided a legislative update (the MCTA bill passed!) and let the group know about his meetings with MNDOT staff on regulatory items, as well as updated everyone on the proposed ordinance on Transportation Network Companies from the city of Minneapolis. Leslie Rosedahl, MCTA’s staff at Lockridge Grindal Nauen, updated MCTA members on their new website (www.mnlimo.org), new member outreach, and new membership materials available on the site.
Visit mnlimo.org for more information.
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Philadelphia, Pa — The American Motor Products (AMProd) road show continues to make its way across the United States. After leaving its California headquarters earlier this year, the tour stopped in several Southwestern cities, including many throughout Texas, and has been making its way throughout the Northeast. The road show—which features numerous sponsors like Chosen Payments, Classic Bus Sales, LimoLime24, Rental Limo, VMT Enterprises, and Create-A-Card—was designed to educate the industry on the products and services available, especially those through AMProd.
Through the end of 2014, Wendy and Dave Ward are meeting with operators in conjunction with industry events and association meetings. The next stop will be Wednesday, July 9, at 6:30 pm at the Lagoon in Essington, Pa., which will feature a dinner prior to the Philadelphia Regional Limousine Association (PRLA) meeting. Next week the road show heads south to Maryland where is will host a lunch at the American Legion Post 109 (Halethorpe, Md.) in conjunction with the Maryland Limousine Association’s meeting. The meeting and lunch will take place on July 15 at 12:30 pm. If interested in attending either meeting, please RSVP by calling 800.935.9135.
Visit american-motor-products.com for more information about their available products and services.
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When Uber (and soon after, Lyft) came to Milwaukee earlier this year, all hopes were that the limousine industry in Wisconsin would have the support of local officials. After some back and forth, the battle so far stands that a provisional license is proposed and that these ridesharing companies will be regulated—but it’s still up in the air on whether it will look more like taxi or limousine regulation. The June conservation at the Milwaukee City Council meeting was productive but any resolution was tabled until the following month (July, no meeting date available).
The Wisconsin Limousine Association (WLA) has been at the forefront. During its June meeting, President Mike Hartmann of Stardust Limousine said that he’d been hearing mixed reviews from the public about Uber. Other board of directors agreed that some of the feedback had been positive, especially with younger people because of the short wait times. But the public is taking notice of the increased traffic delays in some larger cities, and they are unsure about Uber’s safety regarding proper regulation and insurance.
In other news, the association is in the process of composing a letter to the city of Milwaukee regarding inspections. Hartmann says that WLA is requesting that Milwaukee accept the DOT inspection instead of requiring companies to physically bring their vehicles to the Milwaukee for inspection on an annual basis. With the passage of ACT364 (which was enacted on April 28, 2014), all limousine companies need to apply for and receive PC Authority from the State of Wisconsin. This legislation also brings the required minimum amounts of insurance to $350,000 up to $500,000. More information and links to the revised rules can be found on the association’s website at wisconsinlimo.org.
Visit wisconsinlimo.org for more information.
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