Uber, Lyft Pushing Cabbies To Suicide, Taxi Drivers Say

NEW YORK CITY HALL — New York City taxi drivers on Wednesday called on city lawmakers to impose tougher restrictions on ride-hailing services that they say are killing their colleagues.

Four drivers have killed themselves in as many months after struggling to make a living on streets that services such as Uber and Lyft have clogged with cars, drivers said.

More than 100 drivers, including some who work for the ubiquitous apps, rallied outside City Hall Wednesday to mourn the deaths of men they called their brothers. They marked a moment of silence and laid flowers on prop coffins in their honor before decrying what they called an uneven playing field for traditional cabs that some compared to slavery.

"We are sick and tired of burying our brothers," said Bhairavi Desai, the executive director of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance, a group that represents cab drivers. "These are noble men who serve the streets of New York City, some of them for over 30 years of their life. They deserve better."

The drivers called for the city to cap the number of cars run by Uber, Lyft and other services, which they condemned as powerful companies that run on an exploitative business model. Mayor Bill de Blasio reportedly dropped an effort to do so in 2015 after aggressive opposition from Uber.

The rally came about two weeks after the March 16 death of Nicanor Ochisor, a taxi medallion owner and driver from Maspeth, Queens who hanged himself after complaining about his recent struggle to make a living.

His son, Gabriel Ochisor, said his father had been "very depressed" leading up to his death, but showed no signs he was considering suicide.

"I'm just trying to continue what he was trying to fight for and obviously get some change before more like him happen," Gabriel Ochisor said.

Ochisor wasn't alone. Black-car driver Douglas Schifter shot himself outside the City Hall gates on Feb. 5 after making a lengthy Facebook post about the pressures on his job, including competition from Uber.

Danilo Corporan Castillo and Alfredo Perez, both Bronx livery drivers, also committed suicide in recent months, the Taxi Workers Alliance said. Castillo wrote a suicide note that mentioned the "disastrous" state of his industry before jumping out the window of his Manhattan apartment on Dec. 20, the New York Post reported.

New York City is the only municipality in the nation where app-based car services are fully regulated, according to the city's Taxi and Limousine Commission. But that hasn't stopped them from exploding.

Last year there were more than 83,000 TLC-licensed "black cars" — a category that includes app-based cars — more than double the roughly 38,000 in 2015, according to commission reports. Uber says 30,000 New Yorkers sign up to ride with the company each week, with trips growing fastest in the outer boroughs.

That expansion has meant steep cuts to taxi drivers' earnings even as they work as many as 70 hours a week, Desai said. It's also depressed the value of taxi medallions, which drivers have taken out loans to buy that have forced some into bankruptcy, drivers said.

"I know cab drivers who are homeless today. I know cab drivers who have gone blind from driving at night," said Beresford Simmons, a 71-year-old yellow cab driver from Jamaica, Queens who said he's stayed on the job despite a heart surgery and dialysis treatments.

"It's worse than when I started in 1972," Simmons added. "Instead of going up, we're going down."

The drivers called on de Blasio and the City Council to limit how many cars Uber, Lyft and other firms can run on city streets. They also want other reforms that they say would make competition fairer, such as an across-the-board metered fare rate and caps on expenses drivers have to pay.

Several voiced support for a bill sponsored by Councilman Ruben Diaz Sr. (D-Bronx) that they said would help level the playing field. The bill would create a separate TLC license for app-based cars and subject the services to hefty fees and stiff regulations, according to a copy published by Crain's New York Business.

Councilmen Stephen Levin told drivers he backs a cap on app-based cars. But they told him to put his money where his mouth is. "Show us, don't tell us," one person shouted.

"There's no perfect solution, but when people are taking their lives because they have run out of hope, it is time for the city government to sit up and take notice," Councilman Barry Grodenchik (D-Queens) said at the rally.

The TLC has implemented several reforms in recent years to loosen regulations and lower some costs for traditional taxis, spokeswoman Rebecca Harshbarger said in an email. But the commission says it can't put limits on for-hire vehicles without action by city or state lawmakers.

Commissioners will consider a resolution Thursday that would let taxi companies quote fares up-front for rides ordered through authorized apps, such as Curb or Arro, as Uber and Lyft already do.

"We are deeply saddened at the TLC by the recent suicides in the driver community," Harshbarger said. "We mourn with their families, friends, and their brothers and sisters in the industry during this time."

An Uber spokesperson said the company is also "deeply saddened" by the recent deaths of drivers. She did not comment directly on the extra regulations the drivers proposed, but said Uber is working to lift wages for its own drivers.

"Drivers told us we needed to do better and we have been working hard to earn back their trust and improve the driver experience, most recently through 180 Days of Change, which included improvements to earnings and introducing in-app tipping," the spokesperson said in a statement.

Lyft did not respond to a request for comment.

As the debate goes on, Nicanor Ochisor's family is trying to raise $60,000 to pay off his medallion so his widow, Helen, herself a taxi driver, can retire.

Nicolae Hent, a fellow driver who had known Ochisor since 1988, said his close friend never hesitated to help other drivers when they were having trouble with their cars.

"He was a person that never sat down," Gabriel Ochisor said.

Hent still owes $100,000 toward the loan for his own taxi medallion, he said. Despite his own continuing struggle, he said he won't give up the cab drivers' fight for change.

"I will die fighting," Hent said.

(Lead image: Gabriel Ochisor observes a moment of silence Wednesday in memory of his father, Nicanor Ochisor, a taxi driver who committed suicide March 16. Photo by Noah Manskar/Patch)