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Uber taxi service goes to Washington, D.C.

Following last month's legislative win, the on-call car service rolls out its taxi option in the nation's capital.

Donna Tam Staff Writer / News
Donna Tam covers Amazon and other fun stuff for CNET News. She is a San Francisco native who enjoys feasting, merrymaking, checking her Gmail and reading her Kindle.
Donna Tam
Declan McCullagh/CNET

Uber started offering its taxi service in Washington, D.C., today, according to the controversial on-call car service's blog.

Uber said the number of taxis are limited for now. "Many taxis don't fit Uber standards, so we are curating our supply pretty carefully," the blog reads.

Uber lets users order cars through its app and put all charges onto an on-file credit card. To request a taxi instead of the usual black sedan, customers need to select "TAXI" in the Uber app. Standard taxi fees apply, and a 20 percent gratuity will be automatically added to charges.

The service is only available in D.C., but Uber plans to expand to Virginia and Maryland.

This comes a month after the city's leaders approved a legislative framework for "digital dispatch" transportation services, giving Uber some solid footing in the industry. It's had a much rockier road in places like New York, where it had tostop its service, and its hometown of San Francisco, where it faces a lawsuit.