Judge Zaps NYC's Electric Uber, Lyft Plan To A Halt

NEW YORK CITY — A judge temporarily pulled the plug on New York City's push to give unlimited rideshare licenses to electric vehicles as a way jumpstart 100 percent green Uber and Lyft fleets by 2030.

The city Taxi & Limousine Commission tweeted after the Manhattan judge's decision Thursday it'll soon stop accepting new electric for-hire vehicle license applications.

Drivers can still get their applications processed if they get them in before a deadline of Nov. 13 at 9 a.m.

🚨 ALERT 🚨: Due to a NYTWA lawsuit, TLC must stop accepting new EV FHV license applications on Nov. 13 at 9 a.m. Applicants who submit their applications by that deadline will still be able to have them processed.

➡️ Email questions to: LicensingInquiries@tlc.nyc.gov pic.twitter.com/kPTDRaKkKb
— NYC TLC (@nyctaxi) November 9, 2023

The temporary restraining order stemmed from a recent lawsuit leveled by the New York Taxi Workers Alliance, who argued the city's "Green Rides" push would undo hard-won protections for the city's beleaguered yellow cab drivers.

"The addition of an unlimited number of new cars to the roads will have a disastrous impact on driver income and signals a return to the City’s laissez-faire attitude of the previous decade, when an ever-growing pool of drivers was left competing for a finite amount of fares," the lawsuit states.

But another group that represents for-hire vehicle drivers — the Independent Drivers Guild — blasted the lawsuit.

The filing is a bid by taxi medallion owners who don't even drive to perpetuate a "pay-to-work" scheme in which drivers have to rent from taxi and fleet owners, said Brendan Sexton, the guild's president.

“Make no mistake: this is a money grab by predatory fleet and yellow taxi owners," he said in a statement. "These owners want the city’s for-hire vehicle drivers to have no choice but to pay outrageous premiums to rent or lease their TLC vehicles."