Pittsburgh has branched beyond its Rust Belt roots in recent years and worked to recast itself as a hotbed for testing and development of advanced transportation technology. So far, the standard for those efforts had been the city?s work with Uber, which first based its Advanced Technologies Center in the city and then launched, with much fanfare, a pilot project involving the testing of self-driving vehicles on city streets. But the relationship between the municipality and Uber has become strained.
Frustrations with the company?s conduct both within the city and elsewhere have boiled over, and Pittsburgh mayor Bill Peduto and another top city official have been ramping up their criticism of the company in private meetings and public statements.
?We?ve held up our end [of] the bargain, but we haven?t seen much from Uber,? Peduto, a Democrat, told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette last week. ?This is a two-way street, not a one way. I need to see more interest from them in our communities, both locally and internationally.?
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?They currently operate as if they have been given

carte blanche access to our city.?

?Michael Lamb, Pittsburgh city controller

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Beyond the city?s borders, he directed his anger at the company?s perceived efforts to profit from a taxi-driver protest of President Trump?s temporary ban on travel from seven Muslim-majority countries, as well as Uber CEO Travis Kalanick, who initially had accepted a position on a business advisory council created by ...