A screenshot of Lawrence from popular ride-hailing application Uber.

Topeka ? Ride-hailing company Uber says it is bringing its service to four additional cities in Kansas Thursday, only days after Republican Gov. Sam Brownback vetoed regulatory legislation that the company said would lead it to leave the state.

Uber said riders in Lawrence, Leavenworth, Manhattan and Topeka could begin hailing Uber drivers Thursday afternoon. The company already offered its service — linking riders with drivers through a mobile app — in Wichita, Kansas City, Kansas, and adjacent Johnson County.

“We’ve got hundreds of drivers ready to rock ‘n’ roll, and we’ve got hundreds of more applications in the pipeline,” said Will McCollum, the company’s Kansas general manager.

A screenshot of Lawrence from popular ride-hailing application Uber.

Uber will be available in communities with nearly half of the state’s 2.9 million residents. The four newest cities have about 311,000 residents.

The measure Brownback vetoed Monday would have mandated Kansas Bureau of Investigation background checks for ride-hailing companies’ drivers and set requirements for their insurance coverage. The company described the regulations as burdensome.

House Insurance Committee Chairman Scott Schwab, an Olathe Republican and Uber’s most vocal legislative critic, said the timing of its announcement shows its threat to leave the state was “hollow.”

“This makes the governor look a little bit foolish,” Schwab said.

McCollum said the company contemplated such an expansion since entering Kansas last year but Brownback’s veto was “bold action” reassuring Uber it could succeed. He said the threat to leave was serious and said Uber has left other markets, including San Antonio.

He also said public support in Kansas proved crucial to the expansion.

Brownback’s spokeswoman Eileen Hawley said Uber’s expansion typifies growth Kansas expects with a business environment that encourages innovation.

“This is completely aligned with the governor’s message,” she said. “This is a new industry, and we need to not do things that discourage growth in new industries by over-regulating them before we understand them.”

Hawley said Uber mentioned a desire to expand as it urged Brownback to veto the bill but, “They did not discuss timing, nor did they discuss specific communities.”

McCollum said the company’s drivers have $1 million worth of liability coverage while they’re carrying passengers.

But the National Association of Insurance Commissioners had said coverage gaps still remain, and the bill required drivers to show they had the minimum coverage required of all Kansas drivers, including for injuries or property damage from accidents with uninsured motorists. Schwab said gaps in coverage will be larger with Uber expanding.

Lawmakers approved the bill earlier this month by 35-2 in the Senate and 107-16 in the House, far more than the two-thirds majorities necessary in each chamber to override a veto.

Legislators are on their annual spring break until April 29, and Brownback’s veto message called for interested parties to work on new, compromise legislation. McCollum said Uber is open to new proposals.

But Schwab is skeptical and predicted lawmakers will override the veto if there’s no agreement on a new measure.

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