Uber balks at rules proposed by world's busiest airport

ATLANTA (AP) — Atlanta's airport – the world's busiest – is insisting that Uber drivers get fingerprint-based background checks to pick up passengers, but the ride-sharing service is balking at the proposed rule.

The contentious issue looms before a March 30 meeting involving the Atlanta City Council, which must approve the proposed agreement between the airport and ride-sharing firms.

It also comes a few weeks after police say Uber driver Jason Dalton opened fire on people between picking up fares, killing six and wounding two others in Kalamazoo, Mich., in February.

Officials at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport this month said they are moving toward allowing Uber and other ride-sharing services – a reversal of a ban on such services from curbside pickup.

Uber objects to the requirements, which would add "substantial, additional bureaucratic barriers for drivers," company spokesman Bill Gibbons said today.

Furthermore, it would not be possible for Uber to provide reliable and efficient service at Atlanta's airport under the proposal, the company said in a statement.

However, fingerprint background checks promote safety, Airport General Manager Miguel Southwell told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Such a requirement "gives everybody confidence in the system," Southwell said, adding that "it really should be a welcome part of the process."