Uber provides rides with drivers.
The ride-hailing giant, a major contributor to New York City road congestion and one of the biggest supporters and beneficiaries of Governor Ho Chul’s congestion pricing plan, is cutting driver wages while imposing a new $1.50 surcharge on trips between New Jersey and the Big Apple. I’m doing it. The Post learned from these customer journeys:
Uber previously credited more than 80,000 New York and New Jersey drivers $20 for trips between NYC and the Garden State to compensate for tolls, gas and other costs.
But Uber notified drivers last week that it would lower the credit to $16.06 for “peak-hour” trips and $14.06 for off-peak hours.
“Due to rising congestion tolls and other costs, starting January 5, 2025, we will reimburse tolls to better reflect the cost of your travel,” the company said in an email a day earlier.
Brendan Sexton, president of the Independent Drivers Guild, the union representing drivers, called Uber “greedy” and called the pay cuts “obscene.”
“New York leaders cannot allow a multibillion-dollar corporation to use congestion pricing as a way to deprive thousands of hard-working rideshare drivers of their fair wages,” he said.
Uber will earn an additional $6 million a year in revenue from fewer credits for trips from New York City to Newark Airport (a total of 118,137 in October alone), the union estimated.
But Uber insists any savings will be passed on to customers, not the company.
“That’s not fair. This is a lose-lose situation.” said Uber driver Madjed Zegrar. The company added that it recently cut its minimum wage for short trips within NYC from $5.39 to $4, hitting drivers hard.
Zegrar, 37, said the credit cut leaves him $300 a month short because he usually takes at least two New Jersey jobs per shift.
As part of the congestion pricing system, ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft were charged an additional $1.50 surcharge for trips within congested zones, but the state allowed them to pass that cost on to customers, as it did with the similar $2.75 “congestion fee.” I did it. Fee for all trips under 96”Day This distance was approved in 2019.
The growing industry, which lobbied hard to impose congestion charges despite opposition from unions and received a major boost last year when the city lifted limits on the number of rental vehicles allowed on the road, stands to benefit greatly because the new surcharges are cheaper. You can get it. Critics say the $9 it currently costs to enter some parts of Manhattan for a tolled private car is more than the nearly $3 it costs to ride the subway and buses.
Lyft continues to give drivers a $20 credit for trips between NYC and New Jersey.
Uber spokesman Josh Gold said the credit cuts were due to Uber’s efforts to keep fares low.
“New Yorkers cannot afford the additional fees because the taxes and fees levied by the government are currently 15 percent of the average rate and (Mayor) Eric Adams is seeking a six-level increase in five years,” he said.
