As ridesharing continues to transform and disrupt traditional methods of transportation, scrutiny behind the safety of passengers continues to be a topic for discussion, particularly by the long-standing players in the transportation industry. Driver safety is also a concern.

Transportation network companies (TNCs), also known as ridesharing companies, have modernized the transportation industry, and brought modern regulations. The taxi industry believes these differing regulations give ridesharing companies an unfair advantage. In terms of pricing, for example, ridesharing companies can increase prices during peak times, but taxis can't due to regulatory constraints. They further claim that the regulations surrounding ridesharing don't sufficiently protect the safety of passengers as the legacy regulations do for taxi services. There is no evidence that this is accurate, however, and in fact, ridesharing may actually be safer.

Although most states currently classify drivers as independent contractors, other states — most notably, California — allege that the drivers are really employees. In Seattle, Wash., a local law was passed allowing rideshare drivers to unionize, which would require the companies to treat the drivers as employees. If these movements succeed, the TNCs will suddenly be facing a huge workers' compensation cost.

We begin our journey with the safety of drivers

When considering the safety of ridesharing, the first thing we should examine is the safety of the drivers — an important workers' compensation issue for taxi companies. Taxi drivers face the highest on-the-job homicide rate of any occupation, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, almost twice that of law enforcement officials. This is an issue TNCs have taken seriously by developing features within their smartphone applications to protect drivers.