2015-03-19

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) – New York City‘s storied yellow cabs are taking a back seat to black cars.

Uber cars, often black sedans that can be summoned with smartphone apps, now outnumber the yellow taxis that city riders have hailed with a whistle and a wave for generations.

It was a changing-of-the-guard moment that passed with little fanfare this week in figures released by the city’s Taxi and Limousine Commission: 14,088 registered Uber cars compared with 13,587 yellow cabs.

Yellow Cabs Now Outnumbered By Uber Cars On NYC Streets





John Montone reports

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But it hardly means yellow cabs are out of favor. In fact, there are about 440,000 yellow cab rides a day, compared to just 20,000 to 30,000 Uber rides. That’s because Uber drivers often own their own cars and work less than 40 hours a week, while most yellow taxis are owned by cab companies, have more than one driver and are on the road close to 24 hours a day.

“Yellow cab rides significantly outstrip the number of black car rides,” said Meera Joshi, chairwoman of the taxi commission. “So the number of their affiliated vehicles in and of itself doesn’t paint a complete picture.”

Uber was introduced in New York City in 2011 and has grown steadily in popularity, particularly among tech-savvy customers who are comfortable hailing rides through an app that shows when a car is on the way. A customer can even follow its progress with a blip on a street map. Similar companies such as Lyft use apps to connect with riders.

Prices are comparable, but some Uber riders have complained about fare add-ons for larger vehicles and “surge pricing” during rush hour, bad weather or holidays.

“I absolutely do love the convenience, and if it’s not surge pricing I find the costs very comparable and in some cases cheaper than yellow taxis,” said Kerry Farrell, a paralegal who uses Uber about three times a week.

Uber spokesman Matt Wing declined to comment on the significance of the numbers of Uber cars surpassing yellow cabs.

But some drivers and their advocates grumbled that Uber’s growth has flooded the market, lowering average incomes for all drivers.

“Uber having an unlimited number of cars means no drivers — taxi or black car and livery — will earn a decent living,” said Bhairavi Desai, executive director of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance, an advocacy group that includes both Uber and yellow cab drivers as members.

Mamadou Diallo, who has been driving a yellow cab since 2004, said he once could count on at least 30 fares a day. But his take has dropped 30 to 40 percent since Uber and other such car services entered the New York market.

“It’s a jungle,” he said, “and the big fish always eat the small fish.”

“I have a feeling one day the yellow cab is gonna go,” one driver told 1010 WINS’ John Montone. “Uber really cuts into the business.”

But some contrarian cabbies said there’s plenty of business for everyone.

“They worked in L.A. they’re not going to work here, it’s a fad over here. I don’t think they’re going to work very well here,” Moe, the cabbie, said. “They’re working for cheaper than I am, how can they do that with the insurance, the repair bills? I don’t know how they’re doing it, they’re crazy. The yellow will always survive.”

In New Jersey, demonstrators chanted “Keep Uber in New Jersey” outside the statehouse as the state Assembly Transportation Committee held a hearing Thursday on a bill to regulate Uber.

"Keep Uber in Jersey" chants vs NJ CWA taxi drivers rally outside statehouse @CBSNewYork pic.twitter.com/T1dkC2FmS8

— Meg Baker (@megbakertv) March 19, 2015

The company expects stricter amendments to the bill that would “drive Uber out of New Jersey,” Wing told NJ.com.

“We had issues with the bill before the amendments. The amendments make it even worse. The amendments literally guarantee that Uber would be driven out of New Jersey, costing the state thousands of jobs and preventing over 100,000 New Jersey residents from getting a safe, convenient ride whenever they want, wherever they are,” Wing told NJ.com.

The bill, prior to the amendments — which were not immediately available, would require ride-sharing companies that use personal vehicles to get a permit from the Motor Vehicle Commission and meet safety requirements. The bill also requires the drivers get a Motor Vehicle Commission endorsement and that they have valid driver’s licenses and auto insurance. The bill also calls for driver background checks and vehicle inspections.

Ridesharing companies are new to New Jersey, with Uber beginning operations in 2013.

(TM and © Copyright 2015 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2015 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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