Judge Strikes Down NYC Cruising Cap on Ride-Hailing Vehicles

New York – A rule enacted by the de Blasio administration limiting how much time ride-hailing app drivers could travel around busy parts of Manhattan without passengers was struck down on Monday by a state judge, who said that the cap was not based on statistics.

Supreme Court Judge Lyle Frank sided with Uber, Lyft and other app drivers on the rule that went into effect in August with the aim of reducing traffic congestion. The so-called cruising cap lowered the amount of time drivers may roam the streets without fares south of 96th Street to 36 percent by February and to 31 percent by August.

The current percentage was estimated by the administration at 41 percent of drivers’ time without passengers. The Taxi and Limousine Commission threatened to fine companies who didn’t reach that target. There are about 85,000 vehicles for hire solely by app.
“The court,” Frank wrote in his ruling, “agrees with the petitioners that this rationale is simply insufficient … as the numbers should have been derived at as a result of the review undertaken, and not as a starting point.”

Uber welcomed the decision, calling the rule politically-motivated while de Blasio’s office said it was considering an appeal. “These corporations have flooded our streets with so many cars that more than 40 percent drive around empty and clog our streets,” the mayor said in a statement.