NYC's Proposed Uber Cap Pushed By Drivers

LONG ISLAND CITY, NY — Professional drivers rallied Monday to push New York City's proposed for-hire vehicle restrictions over the political finish line. Taxi workers, including Uber drivers, called on the City Council finally rein in the ride-sharing industry this week that has flooded city streets with cars and depressed earnings for drivers.

"If something is not done by the city of New York, tens of thousands of workers will go deeper into poverty," said Bhairavi Desai, the executive director of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance, at the rally outside the Long Island City building where Uber and Lyft have offices.

"The cap is a starting point to help drivers’ recovery and put them back on the road to financial stability," she added.

The Council is set to vote Wednesday on a package of bills aimed at tightening the city's regulatory grip on the app-based ride-sharing industry, including one that would stop the Taxi and Limousine Commission from issuing new for-hire vehicle licenses for a year while it studies additional regulations for the sector. The bill would still allow new licenses for wheelchair-accessible vehicles.

Taxi workers have persistently pushed for a cap over the past several months amid concerns about traffic congestion and the health of the traditional taxi industry. They say companies such as Uber and Lyft have pushed cabbies to financial desperation and even suicide while leaving their own app-based drivers with low wages and long hours.

Uber drivers said they've seen their earnings shrink as the company has cut fares and added thousands of cars to the road, leaving each worker with a smaller piece of the consumer pie.

Inder Parmar, who started driving with the company in 2013, said the per-mile rate he earns now is far less than what it was then. He said he probably would have to sell his house if his children, who are now helping him financially, weren't already out of college.

"We need the rules for the drivers because we are getting exploited" by Uber, Parmar said.

Uber defeated the city's last effort to cap its growth in 2015. The company has launched a similar onslaught this time around with a $1 million ad campaign and an appeal to customers in its smartphone app.

The companies argue the Council bills — one of which would direct the TLC to set a minimum pay rate for drivers — would lead to higher fares and longer wait times. Uber has emphasized the potential hit to riders in transit-starved parts of the outer boroughs, where the company has seen the most growth.

Uber said it supports the Council's proposal to raise driver earnings, but said the freeze on most new vehicles would hinder drivers trying to enter the industry and put a squeeze on those who rent their vehicles from large fleet owners rather than lease or own them.

"The Council’s thoughtful driver earnings proposal is undermined by the proposed vehicle cap which will raise driver rental costs by creating another medallion-like system, which we know doesn’t work well for riders or drivers," Uber spokeswoman Danielle Filson said in a statement.

The Council's legislative effort to address the app-based industry's problems has been in the works for months. In a statement, Speaker Corey Johnson said he's "glad to see broad support for this legislative package from a variety of voices throughout this process, which the Council went into with the goals of increasing fairness, fighting congestion, and helping drivers."

"I think everyone agreed we had to do something and after months of working with Council Members and stakeholders from all sides, I feel good about where we are," said Johnson, a Democrat.

(Lead image: Bhairavi Desai of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance speaks at a Monday rally for proposed regulations of the app-based car service industry. Photo by Noah Manskar/Patch)