200,000 drivers’ jobs are at risk if self-driving cabs operate in Manhattan and Brooklyn.

On Monday, Fernando Mateo, spokesman for the New York Taxi Federation, warned Gov. Kathy Hochul, Mayor Eric Adams and lawmakers that drivers will shut down the city if they do not “immediately” stop self-driving taxis.

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“Today Waymo begins testing five robotaxis in the city, and that is unacceptable,” Mateo said, surrounded by a group of drivers holding signs that read, “No to Waymo,” “Waymo not welcome here,” and “Waymo? Way No,” among others.

He compared autonomous vehicles to “a cancer that must be eradicated” and said that if that does not happen, 200,000 male and female drivers would lose their jobs, affecting their families and at least a million people who depend on their work.

Mateo warned that if authorities do not stop Waymo, “we are going to shut down the city” by refusing to work across the five boroughs. He explained that about 100,000 vehicles known as unlicensed taxis operate in city neighborhoods but are not allowed in Midtown Manhattan.

He also cautioned that allowing this type of taxi in the city “is extremely dangerous” for New Yorkers because the vehicles are not prepared to react in emergencies involving ambulances, firefighters or other situations that require an immediate response from a driver.

“New York City has the most congested and unpredictable traffic in the world. Our streets are filled with schoolchildren, seniors, delivery workers, police officers, firefighters and emergency medical services, all of whom depend on human drivers capable of making split-second, life-saving decisions. No robot or algorithm can replicate that,” he said.

New York City issued its first permits — for now on a trial basis — for autonomous vehicles operated by Waymo, a company owned by Alphabet, Google’s parent company.

“Schedule your pickup time, and we’ll handle the rest. Now you can plan your trip with Waymo in advance, however you want,” read a Waymo post on X announcing it would begin testing in Manhattan and Brooklyn.

Unlike other U.S. cities where these autonomous vehicles already operate, New York law requires a trained specialist to be behind the wheel at all times, even if the vehicle is self-driving.

The company already runs these vehicles in parts of San Francisco and Los Angeles, Silicon Valley in California; Phoenix, Arizona; Austin, Texas; and Atlanta, Georgia. It also plans to expand service to Washington, D.C., in 2026.

teleSUR/ JF

Source: EFE

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