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Update March 19, 2015- Uber drivers now outnumber yellow cab TLC drivers. The taxi medallion moguls who have exploited the drivers for decades don’t seem to have many friends in the government to stave off Uber.
Update February 12, 2015- The TLC-licensed driver of the town car that crashed on 30th Street and the West Side Highway, killing CBS reporter Bob Simon, was driven by an incompetent man. He was an immigrant from Afghanistan with nine previous license suspensions. His left arm did not function, and he was homeless. Yet somehow, the TLC gave this man a license.
Why? read below.
September 13, 2014- By Steven E. Greer
As the new forms of transportation powered by Uber and Lyft grow in New York City, they are poaching the best yellow cab drivers, leaving only the worst of the worst. Now, the yellow cab drivers often cannot understand basic English sentences, such as “Turn right”, much less understand full directions such as “Go to 150 Broadway”.
At first, I thought that my observations were unique to my experiences. After all, I can be critical of even the best service industries. But tonight was the moment when I realized that this is a real trend.
I was out on the town and coming home to Battery Park from Greenwich Village. The yellow cab driver could not understand, “Let’s go down to Battery Park.”, so I said, “Go to the West Side Highway and I will tell you where to turn.”. Further down, I said, “Turn on Chambers.”, and he clearly did not understand. When we got to Chambers, I said, “Turn right”. The driver stopped on the highway and looked back at us, not understanding what I said.
This went on several more times before I managed to find my home after a big ordeal. I walked into my building after much distress and shared my story. A fellow resident said, “Oh my god. I had the same experience.”.
Have you noticed this too? Have cab drivers become noticeably worse recently? Please post your comments.