New York City, Uber Strike 4-Month Deal On Vehicle Cap

Over the past few days, the company had been fighting with Mayor Bill De Blasio over the proposal, with Uber putting out ads showing how much commuters’ wait times would increase with the cap, and the mayor comparing the start up to Walmart.

NEW YORK – The city of New York has capitulated in its bitter feud with Uber, agreeing on Wednesday to shelve plans to cap the number of vehicles operated by the online ride-booking service. The company also ran negative television ads and flooded certain areas of the city with mailers and phone calls. While the agreement was done for all the ride sharing services, Uber was the only company that met with officials to resolve the long dispute. “It makes no sense to arbitrarily cap Uber and other for-hire vehicle companies before we study the impact of congestion on the streets of New York“, Stringer said.

Meanwhile, activists were expected to gather at City Hall late Wednesday to amplify some of the administration’s other talking points, including Uber’s lack of benefits for its drivers, its lack of a surcharge to help fund transit projects and its lack of widespread wheelchair-accessible vehicles.

Is Uber making New York City traffic worse?

Interestingly enough, Uber found a new ally in Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, who came to Uber’s defense against the mayor’s plans, calling Uber a great invention of the new economy.

Uber, which argues it brings economic opportunity and mobility to New York City, praised the agreement with city leaders.

First Deputy Mayor Anthony Shorris said in a statement the city would conduct a four-month study to examine the impact of Uber and similar services on traffic congestion.

Uber and de Blasio have been engaged in an raging back-and-forth over the past week. As temperatures rose past 90 degrees on subway platforms in the summer heat, New Yorkers groaned about the proposed bill on Facebook. While most Islanders have cars – they need them to get around – Uber is an easy way to return to Island late at night or travel within the borough without driving drunk.

The city records have shown that Uber spent $225,000 since last year to lobby the mayor’s office, the City Council and the Taxi and Limousine Commission, the New York Times previously reported.

Josh Mohrer, Uber NYC’s general manager, said: “We are pleased new drivers will continue to be free to join the for-hire industry and partner with Uber”.

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Earlier today, Transportation Committee Chair Ydanis Rodriguez told reporters that the Council had the necessary number of votes to pass the cap.