New York City, famous for its gridlock, is blocking new vehicles from ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft that Mayor Bill de Blasio says have exacerbated the problem.
The City Council voted Wednesday to stop issuing licenses for them for a year while the Taxi and Limousine Commission conducts a study to determine whether permanent caps are needed. Exceptions would be available for wheelchair-accessible cars and in neighborhoods where insufficient transportation is available, if granting them wouldn’t materially worsen congestion, according to the bill sponsored by Council Member Stephen Levin.
“In a just a few years, the number of for-hire vehicles in our city has increased dramatically, snarling traffic and sparking a race to the bottom where all drivers are struggling to make more than poverty wages,” Levin said. “An average of 2,000 additional vehicles hit the streets every month while drivers already spend nearly half their time with empty seats.”
De Blasio, who plans to sign the bill, said after the meeting that the “unchecked growth of app-based for-hire vehicle companies has demanded action.”
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More than 100,000 workers and their families will see an immediate benefit from this legislation. And this action will stop the influx of cars contributing to the congestion grinding our streets to a halt.
— Bill de Blasio (@NYCMayor) August 8, 2018
Levin’s bill, he said, created time for the Taxi Commission to review the issue while curbing growth that has significantly worsened congestion and lowered wages for taxi drivers and ride-share workers alike.
“We’ve seen a race to the bottom in terms of wages and in terms of the livelihoods of these drivers,” he said. “The Uber business model is, ‘Flood the market with as many cars and drivers as possible, gain more market share, and to hell with what happens to those drivers or anybody else involved.'”
San Francisco-based Uber, however, argued that the measure “will threaten one of the few reliable transportation options while doing nothing to fix the subways or ease congestion.” The subways, which the Metropolitan Transportation Authority uses to ferry city residents and workers through the city’s five boroughs and into the suburbs, have grown increasingly crowded over the past decade as ridership increased amid service cuts and track work.
Uber said it takes Council Speaker Corey Johnson at his word “that the pause is not intended to reduce service for New Yorkers, and we trust that he will hold the Taxi and Limousine Commission accountable, ensuring that no New Yorker is left stranded. In the meantime, Uber will do whatever it takes to keep up with growing demand.”
The new rule won’t necessarily stop new drivers from entering the industry, and Uber plans to suggest that those who are interested work out arrangements to use cars that were licensed previously and already in use.
