CHAPEL HILL - The current draft taxi ordinance would require taxi companies to have more than one vehicle, require the cab to have liability insurance and would set either a flat or zone rate for rides.

The regulations would require taxi drivers to undergo drug screening, establish designated pick up points, allow multiple payment options for riders, and require a working air conditioner in the vehicle.

New regulations for taxi drivers may on its way to downtown.

The Town Council is considering a new ordinance that would standardize and regulate taxi fares in downtown Chapel Hill, require certain safety measures and issue permits for taxi owners.

Former UNC-CH student body president Mary Cooper submitted a petition asking the council to look into taxi regulations last year, and said the current system puts students at risk and allows taxi drivers to overcharge.

The current draft taxi ordinance would require taxi companies to have more than one vehicle, require the cab to have liability insurance and would set either a flat or zone rate for rides.

The regulations would require taxi drivers to undergo drug screening, establish designated pick up points, allow multiple payment options for riders, and require a working air conditioner in the vehicle.

Enforcing the ordinance proactively would be a challenge, said Chapel Hill Police Chief Chris Blue.

"There would have to be a fairly significant public education campaign," he said. "From an enforcement point of view it would largely be complaint driven."

Council member Jim Ward said the ordinance should not require companies to have more than one car. There are 11 taxi businesses permitted in town with only one vehicle, Blue said.

"There's no evidence that these businesses are a problem in terms of safety issues," he said. "I think that's an example of being right minded but having the outcome that ends up punishing 11 businesses that aren't a problem right now and are providing service in our community."

The ordinance should allow for students to get reasonably priced rides from downtown to off-campus housing in apartment complexes off of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, said Council member Lee Storrow. A lot of students use the taxi service to get out of downtown after a night out, he said.

"There is a greater demand for late night taxis to students for … off campus housing," he said. "That's really where I have a vested interest in seeing some predictability for students in the community."

Taxi operator Carol Lowndes owns Chapel Hill Best Taxi and drives a single car. An ordinance requiring companies to have at least two cars would put her out of business, because she doesn’t plan to go out and buy another one and find someone to drive it, she said.

The town needs more regulations for taxi drivers to make sure drunk girls coming out of the bars on Franklin Street are safe, she said.

“There are a lot of really young innocent women out there and they're not being safe with the system [we] have," she said. Other taxi companies won’t do background checks on their drivers and will hire anyone just to fill a car, she said.

“They'll just put anybody in those cars and there’s nobody policing that," she said. “Pretty much the way it is anybody can get in a taxi and drive out there."

Blue said town staff had not considered that option and would return to the council with ordinance updates in the fall.

The council will review the ordinance again after its summer recess on September 12.