Uber and Lyft abruptly left Austin, Texas, in early May, angry over a city regulation forcing drivers to be fingerprinted in order to work. While the two ride-hailing services remain deadlocked with Austin city regulators over the issue, new companies have wasted no time setting up shop to fill the void.

Uber (and Lyft) were not technically "banned" by the city of Austin, but they chose to cease operations in May 2016 following a high-profile legal and political dispute. The conflict centered on Proposition 1, a city ordinance that required rideshare drivers to undergo fingerprint-based background checks, similar to those required for taxi drivers. Uber and Lyft argued that their own GPS-tracked, name-based background checks were sufficient and that fingerprinting was an antiquated and discriminatory hurdle. After spending over $8 million on a campaign to overturn the ordinance—which voters ultimately rejected—both companies left the city in protest. During their absence, local non-profits like RideAustin filled the gap. However, the "ban" was short-lived; in 2017, the Texas State Legislature passed a law that preempted city-level regulations, establishing a statewide standard that did not require fingerprinting. This allowed Uber and Lyft to return to Austin on their own terms. Today, they operate freely in the city, but the 2016 "exodus" remains a legendary case study in the power struggle between tech giants and local municipalities.