Cab drivers at the Redmond Airport will no longer be allowed to turn down short-distance fares, under a code amendment approved Tuesday by the Redmond City Council.

The city, which operates the airport, received complaints that some drivers turned away would-be passengers in order to wait for more expensive fares, according to Redmond Mayor George Endicott. Endicott said the city requires cab companies to obtain a permit to pick up fares at the airport, and sets standards on how drivers operate there.

The code change, approved by a unanimous vote of the council Tuesday, forbids drivers from refusing a fare based on length of travel within Deschutes, Jefferson and Crook counties. Councilors also approved a code change barring drivers from refusing fares because of race, color, national origin, age or sex, though Endicott said he’s unaware of any complaints filed under such grounds.

“We just decided once we we’re doing this, let’s make sure we’re covered so we can satisfy state and national law,” Endicott said. “It’s the right thing to do.”

Bucci Shelton, general manager of Checker Cab of Bend, said cab drivers at the airport have largely worked out their own system for picking up fares. Unless an arriving passenger has called ahead to reserve a cab or has a preferred company or driver, the first cab in line takes the first fare to arrive, with each cab moving up as the cab ahead departs, Shelton said. He said the airport has some written rules — cabs can’t pick up passengers at the curb closest to the airport, and cabs with major body damage aren’t allowed to pick up rides — but drivers largely police themselves.

“The airport management doesn’t really enforce hardly anything, it’s pretty much the way the drivers have always done it,” he said.

Shelton said he’s heard stories about drivers who pass over short-distance fares, as longer trips are more lucrative.

Randy Mahaney, owner of Taxis of Bend, said he’s also heard of drivers turning down less expensive fares. He said because nearly every driver is an independent contractor who leases his or her cab from a cab company, it’s not always easy for the company to know how drivers are interacting with customers in the field.

“I can’t speak for all the drivers because everyone’s an independent, but me personally, I tell everyone that is driving my cars to pick up the guest that comes to you,” Mahaney said.