New York City’s Mayor has backed down on his plans to cap the number of new drivers allowed by Uber and similar taxi services in New York City, following a public battle between the two parties.
Mayor Bill de Blasio’s office had proposed to cap the number of new drivers to one per cent for services operating in New York with more than 500 vehicles. The bill was a bid to tackle congestion and pollution as the number of Uber cars in the city rose to exceed those of yellow taxis.
After a public back and forth via Twitter, TV ads, protests and even the introduction of a ‘Bill de Blasio’ tab in the Uber app illustrating how long lead times would be under the new bill, it was announced that De Blasio’s office had entered into an agreement with Uber New York.
In a statement, New York City First Deputy Mayor Anthony Shorris revealed that the city would be partnering with Uber on a traffic study investigating the impact of Uber and other for-hire vehicle industry on traffic congestion on the streets of New York. The company has also agreed to maintain its approximate current rate of growth while the study is undertaken.
“In addition to the traffic study, the City and transportation stakeholders will participate in a larger review of the entire taxi, FHV and livery industries, with a particular focus on revenue for public transit, consumer protections, driver and employee protections, and accessibility for people with disabilities,” said Shorris. “The cap legislation currently before the City Council will be tabled throughout the traffic study process.”
Uber introduced UberPOOL to New York City in December 2014 which allows users to share taxis with other users, thus reducing the cost and increasing the productivity of each taxi.
On its website, Uber laid out its goal to take one million cars off the road via UberPOOL and help reduce congestion in the city.
Uber NYC General Manager Josh Mohrer welcomed the news from the mayor’s office in a statement.
“We’re pleased to have reached an agreement with Mayor de Blasio’s administration and the City Council to collaborate on a joint transportation study and to work together on ways to continue expanding economic opportunity, mobility and transportation access in the city. We are pleased new drivers will continue to be free to join the for-hire industry and partner with Uber. Together, we can build an even better, more reliable transportation system. This is great news for all New Yorkers, including Uber riders and drivers.”
IPWEA NSW Roads and Transport Directorate Manager Mick Savage said that he had not heard of a similar situation arising in Australia yet, but did add that things could go that way in the future. Savage said that discussion to date has centred on the taxation and insurance requirements of drivers in such services.