Boston City Council passes measure to curb ‘dangerous’ food delivery scooter operations

The Boston City Council approved a mayoral ordinance that seeks to crack down on the so-called dangerous and unlawful operations of major food delivery company drivers who often use scooters and mopeds to get around the city.

The Council voted, 11-2, on Wednesday to approve a new local law that will require all national third-party food delivery platforms, particularly Uber Eats, DoorDash and GrubHub, to obtain liability insurance for all workers utilizing their platform in order to receive a permit to operate in Boston.

The ordinance, proposed by Mayor Michelle Wu, also requires delivery platforms to provide the city with data on food delivery trips in Boston and information that documents “unsafe and illegal operations by delivery drivers” on city roads.

“This nation-leading ordinance will help us make our streets safer for everyone while supporting our local restaurants,” Wu said in a statement. “By holding large, national delivery companies accountable and ensuring insurance coverage for delivery drivers, we will help pedestrians and drivers move around our neighborhoods more safely in this changing environment.”

Food-delivery platforms that violate the ordinance by continuing to accept orders and payments without a valid permit from the city will be fined $300 per day per restaurant from which services are available or $300 per order.

Councilors John FitzGerald and Erin Murphy cast the two ‘no’ votes.

Murphy said she was concerned about the “unintended consequences” of the ordinance, and questioned its fairness, given that she felt it was specifically tailored to apply to Uber Eats, DoorDash and Grub Hub. The measure applies to food-delivery platforms that record at least 1 million orders per year.

“This selective application raises questions about fairness and the rationale behind focusing on certain companies over others that contribute similarly to urban traffic,” Murphy said. “The Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce has expressed concerns that the ordinance goes beyond what is necessary to improve safety and could create burdensome requirements for the targeted companies.”

The Council decided to nix the addition of a controversial amendment proposal that would have hit national delivery companies with a 15-cent delivery fee per order to pay for enforcement of the ordinance.

Councilor Gabriela Coletta Zapata, who chaired the committee that held hearings on the ordinance, said she opted to kill the amendment after some councilors raised concerns that the fee may be passed onto consumers, local businesses or delivery drivers.

The decision went over well with at least two of the companies, DoorDash and GrubHub, but was bashed by the councilor who proposed the amendment, Sharon Durkan, who accused her colleagues of caving into the wealthy companies who lobbied against the delivery fee.

“Grubhub appreciates the Council’s collaboration to improve this ordinance, and we are particularly pleased by the removal of the delivery tax that would have devastated couriers and restaurants throughout Boston,” Patrick Burke, a GrubHub spokesperson, said in a statement.

“While we still have concerns about the ordinance’s approach to street safety and its potential impact on delivery costs, we remain committed to working with lawmakers on comprehensive solutions to better serve communities throughout the Commonwealth.”

Durkan said she was excited about the potential for the ordinance to curb some of the “unlawful and dangerous” food delivery driver operations, but “disappointed” by the fee’s exclusion, saying that the Council didn’t accomplish all that it needed to.

“DoorDash, GrubHub, Uber, I’d like to give you a suggestion, pay your lobbyists a little more,” Durkan said. “They’ve got a win on the Boston City Council today, because today, the Council is deciding that we don’t have seven votes for a modest 15-cent fee to ameliorate the issues they cause on our streets.

“They have a combined market share of $235 billion but 15 cents per order, that’s too much,” Durkan said, who proceeded to sarcastically clap her hands and add, “So congratulations.”

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