Alternative ride-sharing platform Empower must hit the brakes in D.C.

A D.C. Superior Court judge has ordered rideshare service Empower to cease operations in the city after the company failed to adhere to regulations.

The order came Tuesday from Superior Court Judge Shana Frost Matini, who told Empower to stop rides and operations that begin or end in the city until the company registers with the District’s Department of For-Hire Vehicles. 

Empower is a more exclusive version of Uber or Lyft and requires drivers to pay to belong. The upside is they can set their fares.

Despite Empower’s relatively low footprint in the D.C.-Maryland-Virginia area, the city’s Department of For-Hire Vehicles has been trying to force the company to register for years. The District has impounded Empower’s vehicles and fined the company several times. 

D.C. Council member Brianne Nadeau, the Ward 1 Democrat who launched an investigation into Empower this year, endorsed Judge Matini’s ruling, calling on the company to steer the right way.

“The judge has confirmed what was plain from the start,” Ms. Nadeau said in a statement. “Empower is a rideshare company and must follow the rules of ride-share companies.”

Uber and Lyft also resisted calls from D.C. authorities to register. Those companies eventually inked deals with the city, leading to the creation of the Department of For-Hire Vehicles. Registering with the department means submitting to emissions and background checks, implementing anti-discrimination policies and paying congestion fees and taxes. 

When faced with calls to register with the city, Empower has argued that it already conducts insurance and background checks for its employees, so it would be unnecessary. 

Under Tuesday’s ruling, Empower could face more fines from the District and even contempt charges if it continues to operate in the city.