News (10.19.20): Stolen Taxi Crashes in Upper East Side, What Prop. 22’s Defeat Would Mean for Uber and Lyft, NYC May Lift Restrictions on Some Hot Spots, Uganda's "Taxi Divas" Take the Wheel
Select news headlines for Monday, October 19th 2020
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Thieves take taxi on joyride before crashing into parked cars (NY Post)
Thieves stole a yellow cab around 10am near Columbus Avenue and West 90th Street, after the TLC driver left the car unattended with the keys inside.
Police spotted the stolen cab at about 4:30pm driving through East Harlem but the thieves refused to stop and the police lost them after a brief chase.
At around 5pm, the taxi smashed into several parked cars at East 88th Street and Lexington Avenue and the thieves fled the scene and are still yet to be found.
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What Prop. 22’s defeat would mean for Uber and Lyft — and drivers (LA Times)
If Prop 22 passes it would essentially be business as usual. Uber/Lyft though would abide by certain minimum wage rules when a driver is actively on a trip. Drivers would also get a healthcare subsidy and workers comp insurance.
If Prop 22 does not pass Uber/Lyft would likely challenge AB5 in court, which could be a 2 year process and one that may end up in front of the Supreme Court.
While many drivers could lose their “job” if Prop 22 fails and Uber/Lyft’s cost structure would be dramatically impacted, some experts believe it is not as bad as the companies describe and would be surprised if more part-time drivers weren’t employed to meet demand during off-peak hours.
Prop 22’s success or failure will likely influence how other states and jurisdictions approach laws around ridesharing (Note: NYC and Seattle have minimum wage structures in place already, which are likely to be unchanged).
It’s worth noting that Democratic nominees Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have supported AB5 and endorse a “no” vote on Prop 22.
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New York City May Soon Lift Restrictions on Some Covid-19 Hot Spots (WSJ)
Covid-19 hot spots in Queens could have lockdown restrictions loosened later this week as infection rates decline.
Gov. Cuomo said he would announce changes to NYC’s red zones on Wednesday.
NYC’s positivity rate was 2.17% and the 7-day rolling average was 1.62%.
In Brooklyn’s red zone, the infection rate was 4.6%, down from about 6% at the beginning of October.
“We do continue to see a leveling off in some of the areas of greatest concern…We can get out of this in just a few weeks if everyone does what they need to do…We can stop a second wave…Right now the numbers suggest we are stopping a second wave, but we have to remain vigilant” - NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio
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Covid-19: Uganda's 'taxi divas' grab the wheel during economic downturn (Stuff)
Diva Taxi, is asn all-female ridesharing service, founded by Gillian Kobusingye, a local woman who lost her logistics job at the start of the pandemic.
Diva Taxi believes countless women are looking for job opportunities at a time of severe economic distress.
The Diva Taxi app has been downloaded at least 500 times, and each of the company's 72 drivers makes an average of 30 rides each week.
“It started off as a joke, supported by close friends and family, but eventually the idea picked up…They said, ‘Why not? As ladies, you know we can no longer slay on Instagram on the outside, so why don’t we slay as divas with a cause. So we called it Diva Taxi.” - Diva Taxi spokeswoman Rebecca Makyeli
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