Your next Uber ride in New York City may be in a yellow taxi cab
Your next Uber ride in New York City may be in a yellow taxi cab
Hail to the cab driver, cab driver, cab driver man
Uber isn’t going to spell the end of the iconic yellow taxi cab in New York City, it’s actually embracing its long-held rival, the original (and quite literal) form of ride-hailing transportation. It’s coming full circle in the city that never sleeps.
Uber’s new partnership with New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission will integrate roughly 14,000 traditional taxis into the Uber app, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal. Taxis in New York currently run app-based software from Creative Mobile Technologies and Curb Mobility. It’s that software will link up with Uber’s tech and allow you to hail a yellow taxi cab starting in the Spring of 2022.
A yellow taxi through the Uber app will cost roughly the same as an Uber X ride and you’ll be able to see the price in advance without having to stare at the meter hoping it somehow will keep the price down. That’s a win for consumers, especially tourists who probably don’t have apps like Curb downloaded on your their; they probably have the Uber app, though. Taxi cabs will have the ability to accept and decline rides, so they won’t be forced into rides like normal Uber drivers.
Why Uber and yellow taxis are ride-sharing
Uber and the NYC taxi cab companies struck this agreement for something more than consumer convenience. It’s a benefit to Uber, which is facing a driver shortage along with rising fuel prices. Puting existing yellow cabs to work through its software means that you’re likely to wait less time for a ride and maybe – just maybe – not pay as much for the ride (the law of supply and demand should kick in).
Uber will have more labor, yellow taxi cab companies will integrate with their former rival, and consumers will be given a new alternative mode of transportation to get where they need to go. And the sight of yellow taxi cabs will continue in New York City. The only ones that won’t benefit, according to the WSJ, may be current Uber drivers who have been able to take advantage of bonuses during the shortage. Yes, it’s not just all of those PS5 restocks in demand – it’s labor, too.
Uber doesn't plan to stop its integration with New York City taxi cabs in the coming weeks of 2022. It wants to list every taxi in the world on its app by 2025, a bold and fairly surprising move given its original taxi-cab-disruptor vision.