A little more than a year after the ride-sharing company Uber began operating in Toledo, city officials and owners of traditional taxicab companies have questions about whether the service is properly regulated.

Uber, which generally avoids the fees, inspections, driver background checks, and taxes required of most traditional taxicab companies, has generated similar questions in other locations as the ride-sharing app has expanded to operate in more than 300 cities in 60 countries.

Scott and Judy Potter, owners of Black and White Cab, have reached out to city administrators, warning that services like Uber, which defines itself as a “technology platform that connects riders with different transportation options,” are a public safety hazard.

“I’m not looking to shut Uber down,” Mr. Potter said. But he said he is concerned that private ride-sharing services do not need to follow the same safety regulations as licensed taxicabs in the city.

Toledo Municipal Code requires taxicab drivers to undergo background checks that include fingerprinting. Additionally, drivers must renew their license annually, which includes a check on physical fitness and driving competency.

Uber drivers, in contrast, are not regulated by the city. Uber spokesman Lauren Altmin said potential Uber drivers provide personal information, including Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers, and proof of insurance, before they are approved. They also undergo a background check performed by commercial screening companies that use databases including the National Sex Offender Registry and the motor vehicle registration file associated with the license number provided, she said.

Without fingerprinting, these companies cannot ensure that the personal identification information provided is accurate, and, unlike state and federal records that reveal entire criminal histories, these databases only date back seven years.

Ms. Altmin said the app’s feedback loop for drivers and passengers allows for safety.

“If something happens while in a car, our staff can look at it and respond in real time,” she said.

Uber came to Toledo in June, 2014, and has hundreds of drivers in the area. The company has since coordinated tens of thousands of rides throughout the region, Ms. Altmin said.

“Uber’s technology is really changing the way people connect to their city and move around their city,” she said.

Rider safety

Taxicab companies across the country have complained that Uber’s driver background checks do not adequately protect riders. The Taxicab, Limousine & Paratransit Association, which represents taxi and limo companies, has created a website, whosdrivingyou.org, to track Uber safety incidents.

And in California, a 62-page lawsuit filed by the district attorneys of San Francisco and Los Angeles in San Francisco Superior Court in December charges the company with misrepresenting its concern for safety, citing 25 instances in which Uber’s background checks failed to turn up felonies and misdemeanors in drivers’ pasts.

No background checks are perfect, however, and Uber claims that personal information and GPS features of its app protect both rider and driver.

Uber supporters claim that their precautions make the service even safer than taxicabs, as they protect drivers by providing personal information for each rider, and the app uses GPS to track location of each driver at all times.

Mr. Potter also complained that Uber vehicles are unmarked.

“If everything at the grocery store was in an unmarked brown bag, would you buy anything? No, you wouldn’t. You want to see what you are getting,” he said, adding that taxicabs in Toledo are required to be marked with lettering at least 3 inches high.

When using the Uber app, however, riders receive basic information about their drivers, including the model of the car that will pick them up.

Taxi regulations

Safety is just one area in which ride-sharing companies such as Uber are less regulated than traditional taxicab companies in Toledo.

There are 22 individual cab companies operating in Toledo, city spokesman Stacy Weber said. Many of these companies have only one taxicab license. Black and White, with its large fleet, has 90.

Companies pay $100 per year for each taxicab license and $25 for the police department to inspect their vehicles, coming to $125 per year in operation fees. At this time, there is no such regulation on Uber or Lyft in Toledo, Ms. Weber said.

With some similarities to Uber, Lyft announced its expansion to Toledo in April, 2014. Lyft says it creates a bond between driver and passenger by requiring that neither can remain anonymous in the transaction. Drivers and passengers exchange photos of one another, and they rate one another at the end of the ride.

Lyft drivers use their own cars and attach large furry pink mustaches on the front.

Ohio law also requires taxicabs to have a vendor’s license, which means they charge passengers a state sales tax. That license is an additional $25 per year per cab.

“Uber and Lyft don’t charge sales tax,” Mr. Potter said.

‘Wake-up call’

Adam Loukx, Toledo City law director, said taxicab regulations are meant to “keep the traveling public safe,” adding that the regulations also “make sure you have uniformity of pricing and safety.”

“Why wouldn’t the same regulations apply to Uber or Lyft?” Mr. Loukx asked. “In complete candor it’s one of those things that hasn’t been addressed yet.”

While he has never used Uber or Lyft, he said he knows that many describe the services as “convenient and hip,” and he said that it might be a good thing to have them around as an option in Toledo.

Black and White Cab’s Mr. Potter agreed that the convenience of Uber and Lyft are attractive.

“I think that Uber and Lyft provided a huge wake-up call for our industry,” he said.

At least nationally, Uber is rapidly gaining popularity. Certify, a travel and expense firm, reports that business travelers in the second quarter of 2015 used Uber more than they used taxis, with Uber taking 55 percent of ground transportation.

Some cities require companies such as Uber and Lyft to follow the same regulations as taxis. This includes New York City, where all Uber drivers must obtain the same licenses as cab drivers.

Ohio House Bill 237 would require companies such as Lyft and Uber to apply to the state for a permit. Before certifying a driver, the company would have to check for car insurance and conduct a background check. The bill passed the Ohio House in June and in September was referred to committee in the Ohio Senate.

For now, cab owners like the Potters continue to lobby for local and state regulation of Uber, as it continues to offer rides to Toledoans.

Staff writers Anthony Kayruz and Ryan Dunn contributed to this report.

First Published October 4, 2015, 4:00 a.m.