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Gas Delivery Startups Want to Fill Up Your Car Anywhere, But It Might Not Be Legal (bloomberg.com)

Posted by msmash on from the story-of-gasoline,-convenience,-and-law dept.

Eric Newcomer, reporting for Bloomberg: A new crop of startups are trying to make gas stations obsolete. Tap an app, and they'll bring the gas to you, filling up your car while you're at work or at home. Filld, WeFuel, Yoshi, Purple and Booster Fuels have started operating in a few cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Palo Alto, Nashville, Tennessee, and Atlanta, Georgia. But officials in some of those cities say that driving around in a pickup truck with hundreds of gallons of gasoline might not be safe. "It is not permitted," said Lt. Jonathan Baxter, a spokesman for the San Francisco fire department, adding that if San Francisco residents see any companies fueling vehicles in the city, they should call the fire department. "We haven't talked to them. I don't know about that. It's news to me," said Nick Alexander, co-founder of Yoshi. "You can never ask for permission because no one will give it," said Chris Aubuchon, the chief executive officer at Filld. The Los Angeles Fire Department said it's drafting a policy around gasoline delivery. "Our current fire code does not allow this process; however, we are exploring a way this could be allowed with some restrictions," said Capt. Daniel Curry, a spokesman for the city's fire department.

7 of 460 comments (clear)

  1. What they mean is.. by cyn1c77 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    What they say:

    "Our current fire code does not allow this process; however, we are exploring a way this could be allowed with some restrictions," said Capt. Daniel Curry

    What they mean:

    "We will soon let you know how much we are going to tax your new business opportunity!"

    1. Re:What they mean is.. by FireballX301 · · Score: 5, Informative

      Call me a statist all you like, but I am 100% for regulation of the equivalent of gas tanker trucks meandering neighborhoods and commercial parks topping off people's cars, and having taxes on that service in order to fund the regulation, because I don't want to see some 20-something communications major driving around every day with a U-Haul full of jerry cans tied down with bungee cords. I say this even though I am 100% behind having the service available, because I'd find it amazingly useful.

      The alternative is letting it go unregulated, watching some fly by night operation have their delivery driver explode along with all his cargo, the execs of the company 'vanishing', a media shitstorm, and the industry being literally banned.

  2. Re:I can see this as an environmental disaster by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Sure, but with Web 3.0, you don't ask for permission or worry about regulations, and do whatever you want, no matter how harmful. It's the Eric Cartman school of business, and it seems to be very popular these days.

  3. Translation by PvtVoid · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "You can never ask for permission because no one will give it"

    Translation:

    "We are fully aware that our business model violates multiple safety and environmental laws. But we're an app, so fuck you."

  4. Re:Forget about security by PvtVoid · · Score: 5, Informative

    Granted, I can see startups trying to put a plastic water tank on the back of a pickup and call it the same thing

    Ding! From TFA:

    Purple has a fleet of about 80 cars driving around Los Angeles, San Diego, Orange County and Seattle with up to a half-dozen five-gallon gas canisters in the trunk.

    Are they fucking insane?

  5. Re:I can see this as an environmental disaster by rsborg · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Sure, but with Web 3.0, you don't ask for permission or worry about regulations, and do whatever you want, no matter how harmful.
    It's the Eric Cartman school of business, and it seems to be very popular these days.

    It's the "Uber guide to evading pesky governmental regulation" approach - you just buy "activists" and lobby local governments to keep the hounds at bay until your service gains critical mass and can't be legislated away.
    http://www.politico.com/story/...

    Does corruption by any other name stink as strongly?

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  6. Re:I can see this as an environmental disaster by Archangel+Michael · · Score: 5, Informative

    The actual model being used is "we require stationary gas retailers to be licensed, regulated, and inspected and are applying the same standard to mobile refueling."

    One is legally regulated (already in place) the other is "oh shit, that is something current laws don't account for" retroactive regulation for something that isn't stationary.

    From your quoted article

    “Our current fire code does not allow this process; however, we are exploring a way this could be allowed with some restrictions,”

    Which is utter bullshit. Take a look here (hint, already legal) http://www.transferflow.com/fu...

    With a Transfer Flow refueling tank, you don’t have to guess! Our refueling tanks are Department of Transportation (DOT) legal to carry and transfer gas, diesel, ethanol, methanol, kerosene and jet fuel in all 50 U.S. states. Having a DOT legal refueling tank from Transfer Flow means you won’t get red tagged and fined by your Highway Patrol for carrying an illegal fuel tank in the bed of your truck. Click here to see our Special Permit from the Department of Transportation.

    Good luck preventing that which already exists, simply because it disrupts existing markets.

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