New York city has passed new rules to get a grip on the rising growth of companies like Uber and Lyft and this has forced both to stop taking new drivers in New York City. Uber says that it’s no longer accepting new drivers “in part to new TLC regulations,” meaning the new Taxi and Limousine Commission regulations.
The New York City Council passed that legislation in December of last year. It makes ride-hailing companies pay their drivers at least $17.22 per hour after expenses. This formula is based on what they call the “utilization rate” which makes up the share of time that a driver spends with passengers in the vehicle compared to the time they spend idle.
These rules also impose penalties on companies that run too many cars on the city’s streets without passengers. If a company has a higher utilization rate, the less it has to pay drivers to meet the wage requirements. And so they aren’t accepting new drivers right now in the city.
“Because of TLC regulations, we’re currently not accepting new drivers in New York City,” Lyft said, adding “We do have a waitlist and will let drivers know when they can apply to drive.” Uber says that it will add new drivers as existing ones exit and the demand from riders increases. So, for now, you have to wait.
Source Ubergizmo
