There Are Now More Uber Cars Than Yellow Cabs In New York
Uber is taking over the streets of New York, whether you like it or not. After only about four years in New York City, the ridesharing company now has 14,088 black and luxury cars on the streets in the five boroughs. That’s about 500 more than the 13,587 medallion cabs currently working.
Those statistics come from a New York Post report, which points out that the competitive rates on Uber have lured some drivers away from the official yellow cab system, where getting a TLC medallion can be an excruciating process. But it should also be noted that just because there are more cars affiliated with Uber, that doesn’t mean that they’re always operating as cabs. Uber drivers can set their own schedules, which means they aren’t as regularly on the roads as taxi drivers. The Post also noted that yellow cabs make ten times more trips than Uber cars on average, which speaks to that. It also doesn’t take into account gypsy cabs and car services, which operate as de facto yellow cabs in the outer boroughs, despite the introduction of green cabs. But sketchy business practices are no, looks like Uber is in New York to stay.