Segs in the City Files Suit Over Tour Guide Licensing

Tour guides call new regs infringement on free speech

If you're a tour guide in the nation's capital, new regulations are in place to ensure you know L'Enfant Plaza from Logan Circle.

But the operators of a Segway tour -- Segs in the City -- say the new regulations are an unconstitutional infringement on free speech.

Baltimore residents Bill Main and Tonia Edwards, who own Segs in the City, filed a federal lawsuit Thursday asking a judge to invalidate the new regulations.

Under the new requirements, tour guides must pass a 100-question, multiple choice exam that tests their knowledge of the city's architecture and history, among other things.

The Institute for Justice, a Virginia-based legal group representing the tour guides, says the government cannot block people from giving tours and talking about the city's history simply because they don't hold a license.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
Contact Us