Uber launching locally next week

August 22, 2017 at 2:52 a.m. | Updated September 8, 2017 at 5:24 p.m.

by Karl Richter

In this Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2016, file photo, a driver displaying Lyft and Uber stickers on his front windshield drops off a customer in downtown Los Angeles. Hailing a ride with a smartphone app in many U.S. cities could come down to a fight over fingerprints. Following incidents where Uber drivers were found to have criminal records, a growing number of state and local governments want ride-hailing drivers to undergo fingerprint background checks. Uber and its chief rival, Lyft, have fought those checks, contending their own method of vetting drivers is just as safe.
In this Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2016, file photo, a driver displaying Lyft and Uber stickers on his front windshield drops off a customer in downtown Los Angeles. Hailing a ride with a smartphone app in many U.S. cities could come down to a fight over fingerprints. Following incidents where Uber drivers were found to have criminal records, a growing number of state and local governments want ride-hailing drivers to undergo fingerprint background checks. Uber and its chief rival, Lyft, have fought those checks, contending their own method of vetting drivers is just as safe.

Ride-hailing service Uber will begin operating in Texarkana next week.

The company's local launch date is Aug. 29, communications manager Travis Considine said. Local stakeholders and elected officials are being invited to an official announcement event to be held that day.

Uber experts will be available to help prospective drivers from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. today through Friday in the Texas-side Sprint store at 3741 Mall Drive.

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