The Californian group puts an end to years of fights with New York taxis. They will be integrated into Uber from mid-May. An agreement that surprised everyone, even the city regulator.
Since its arrival in New York in 2011, Uber has been at war with yellow taxis, whose drivers have multiplied legal actions to curb the expansion of the platform. Main argument: to make the taxi, the affiliated companies must pay very expensive licenses to the Taxi and Limousine Commission (LTC). We’re talking hundreds of thousands…
Since its arrival in New York in 2011, Uber has been at war with yellow taxis, whose drivers have multiplied legal actions to curb the expansion of the platform. Main argument: to make the taxi, the affiliated companies must pay very expensive licenses to the Taxi and Limousine Commission (LTC). We are talking about hundreds of thousands of dollars. Now the hatchet is buried. To everyone’s surprise, including the LTC which had seen nothing coming, Uber and the yellow taxis will now go together. At least partially. From mid-May, it will be possible to order a taxi on the Californian platform. Dedicated taxi apps (Curb, Arro and CMT) will be integrated. Taxis, which may refuse the race, must respect the variable rates of Uber X. The price of the race will be defined in advance. Obviously, the yellow taxis will be able to continue their marauding in the streets of New York which is their main source of income. With this agreement, Uber, which works with 95,000 VTCs in New York, will add 14,000 taxis to its offer. An elegant way to deal with the shortage of drivers and to pacify relations. This partnership with taxis is not a first for Uber: the Californian group is already doing this in several European countries. Especially in Spain where thousands of taxis (Barcelona, Madrid, Valencia and Malaga) are now referenced on the platform. A total of 122,000 taxis joined Uber last year. Does the New York agreement, the biggest of all, foreshadow a real turning point in Uber’s strategy? Yes, if we are to believe its vice-president who, in February, spoke of “integrating all taxis into Uber by 2025”.
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