Battle between NY mayor, Uber heats up on eve of vote

A de Blasio spokesman countered by saying that Cuomo’s concerns that Uber might register their cars in the suburbs yet service the city was a “manufactured pretext” since current laws prohibit that. The company consented to a four-month study of its impact on traffic and the environment while the City Council agreed to sideline legislation that would cap expansion. But he also stressed that Uber will have “a strong presence in this city”.

Wednesday, his administration announced it had backed off the proposal under intense backlash, instead opting for “a four-month study on the effect of Uber and other for-hire vehicle operators” on the city’s traffic, as mentioned by the New York Times. The fact that the taxi industry donated heavily to de Blasio’s mayoral campaign only complicates matters.

The councilman said this week’s accord was important but pointed out “whether or not this is a positive or negative agreement for the city will depend on whether the mayor reshapes how the 1970s for-hire vehicle industry is now structured”. Opponents like Comptroller Scott Stringer, councilmember Dan Garodnick, and State Governor Andrew Cuomo publicly opposed the ban.

But that’s not where the agreement ends, De Blasio wants Uber to contribute to the funding of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the regional public transit agency.

De Blasio said a cap was needed to study Uber’s impact on congestion. Moreover, Uber added a new feature to its app that let users see what the alleged wait time for an Uber auto would be if the mayor’s bill was passed.

In return, New York said it would not impose a vehicle limit for this period.

The deal that, for now, decided the ride-hailing behemoth Uber’s future in New York City began with a phone call to Rome. If everything goes well, the city could come back to ask the company for funding.

The mayor was blindsided by criticism from a furious Mark-Viverito, who objected to the mayor’s assertion that he still wielded the threat of a cap if Uber failed to cooperate during the study.

He declined to comment on the Yellow cab industry’s more than $500,000 in campaign donations to the de Blasio administration.

Currently, Uber has 25,000 vehicles operating on their behalf, outnumbering the 13,000 traditional yellow taxis.

Yellow taxis make 90% of their trips in Manhattan, as mentioned by city officials.

With major support in immigrant communities, Uber said that more than a quarter of all Uber rides are to, from or within the outer boroughs, compared to just 6 percent of traditional yellow taxi trips.