Cuomo Wants Uber, Lyft In Upstate New York

Noting that Albany, Rochester, Buffalo and Syracuse are the only cities in the U.S. of their size not to have ride sharing services, Governor Andrew Cuomo said this week that he supports having them in the upstate region.  Uber and Lyft are available in the New York City area, but state legislators have so far blocked them from other parts of the state.

Approval for the ride sharing service expansion to upstate did not clear the Legislature earlier this year because of a disagreement between the Assembly and Senate.  The Times Union reported that the Assembly proposed high insurance rate limits that would be too expensive for most Uber and Lyft drivers.  Some legislators say they will not give in on that demand.

Supporters of the ride sharing services argue that lives are saved when people use them instead of driving under the influence.  Most drivers are within 10 minutes of a request, while the wait time for a taxi can be much longer.  Most cities in the U.S. do have the services available.  Upstate New York is one of the very few regions in the country where the service is blocked.