Catching an Uber is more legal than it was yesterday in this Australian state

Another win.
 By 
Ariel Bogle
 on 
Catching an Uber is more legal than it was yesterday in this Australian state
An Uber driver won a significant legal victory Wednesday. Credit: LightRocket via Getty Images

Uber has slowly but surely been winning legislative battles across Australia to have ridesharing legalised, but the U.S. company has not gotten far in the state of Victoria.

The government is yet to make a move to legalise the service in cities like Melbourne, and now the courts have weighed in, seemingly legalising the service.

On Wednesday, Melbourne driver Nathan Brenner won an appeal against a A$900 fine he was issued for driving UberX without accreditation, ABC News reported.


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Brenner was initially fined in December in the Melbourne Magistrates Court, and was also required to pay the prosecution costs of the Victorian Taxi Commission. According to the publication, that's now been overturned, along with the charges and the fine. The Commission has been contacted for comment.

Despite the legal fight and taxi driver protests, Uber has continued to operate in Melbourne, even launching its food delivery service, UberEats, in April.

Victoria's Public Transport Minister Jacinta Allan told Mashable Australia in a statement the decision "highlights the complexity of this issue." She said the government needed more time to consider the court's findings.

On the other hand, Matt Denman, general manager of Uber Victoria, welcomed the news but stopped short of declaring the service effectively legalised. "We are delighted that our driver-partner Mr Brenner won his appeal today in the the County Court of Victoria, and was awarded costs," he told Mashable Australia in a statement.

"The time for excuses is over. The Andrews Government needs to listen to the hundreds of thousands of Victorians who are choosing ridesharing every week and introduce sensible, safety-based regulations without delay."

At this point, it just seems inevitable.


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Topics Uber

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Ariel Bogle

Ariel Bogle was an associate editor with Mashable in Australia covering technology. Previously, Ariel was associate editor at Future Tense in Washington DC, an editorial initiative between Slate and New America.

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