A number of mayors, including Mayor Brown, have stepped up and are showing vocal support for Uber spreading its wings across New York State. A consolidated effort called “NY Needs Uber” is now underway, driven by state and community leaders’ voices that speak for their cities and communities. Now that the people have spoken, their leaders are joining the campaign to bring integral car sharing services to cities such as Buffalo. The Mayors are joining a coalition for progress and change.
“We are a coalition of New Yorkers who want to see Albany leaders embrace new technology that will build on the Empire State’s economic revitalization. We support ridesharing services like Uber which has the potential to create 13,000 jobs in one year and make our communities safer by reducing drunk driving incidents.” – A mission statement signed by the mayors, as part of a coalition that was formed last week
The coalition hopes to have a regulatory framework passed, which would allow car share operators to establish outside of the five boroughs in NYS.
Full list of coalition members:
- Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown
- Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren
- Binghamton Mayor Richard David
- Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner
- Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan
- Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD)
- Congressman Chris Collins
- Rev. Dr. W. Franklyn Richardson, Senior Pastor Grace Baptist Church, Mt. Vernon.
- New York State Restaurant Association
- The Business Council of New York State President & CEO Heather C. Briccetti, Esq.
- Vic Christopher, Vice President, Board of Directors, Downtown Troy Business Improvement District
- Rev. Dr. Victor Collier, Pastor of Mt. Olivet Baptist Church & Vice President for Programs of the Albany African American Clergy United for Empowerment
- Walt Dixie, The Alliance Network, Syracuse
- Lorraine Bracco, actress, New Yorker
- Stephen M. Kraz, President, Local 786, Bethlehem Police Supervisors’ Association
- The Student Association at Syracuse University
Along with a petition (see here), Uber is driving hard to make people aware of the lost economic impact in Buffalo. The car sharing company recently stated that each week over 2000 people in Buffalo open the app looking for a ride. Over 400 potential partners attended Uber’s Statewide Jobs Tour in Buffalo (see lead image). Buffalonians are ready to hit the roads if and when the car share service is given the green light.
Uber operates in NYC where it is regulated by the NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission. Similar regulations would be established in Buffalo, in order for the company to operate. Now that more powerful voices are being added to the conversation, it’s getting harder to ignore the public’s outcry for car sharing services that most other cities take for granted.