NYC will require Uber and Lyft to go fully electric by 2030
Photo by Pranay Pareek on Unsplash
All New York City Uber and Lyft rideshare vehicles must go 100 percent electric by 2030, Mayor Eric Adams announced during his State of the City address last week. The decision will affect roughly 100,000 drivers for the two rideshare platforms, which both applauded the city’s announcement, as first reported by The Verge.
Both Uber and Lyft have already begun efforts to incentivize their workers to switch to electric vehicles, including a partnership with rental car company Hertz and a policy that authorizes higher fares for drivers of electric vehicles.
As The Verge reported, the two rideshare companies are known to take issue with new requirements set for their vehicles but have responded positively to the city’s new policy.
“We are excited to partner with New York City on our journey,” Paul Augustine, director of sustainability at Lyft, said in a statement. “New York’s commitment will accelerate an equitable city-wide transition to electric, and we’re eager to collaborate with the TLC on an ambitious plan for a rideshare clean mile standard.”
“We applaud the Mayor’s ambition for reducing emissions, an important goal we share,” Josh Gold, senior director of policy at Uber, said in a statement. “Uber has been making real progress to become the first zero-emissions mobility platform in North America, and there’s much more to do.”
The city is currently working towards electrifying its fleet of vehicles. As of last September, 4,000 vehicles in the city fleet have been switched to electric vehicles.
“Uber and Lyft will be required to have a zero-emissions fleet by 2030. That’s zero emissions for over 100,000 vehicles on our city streets. And it will be achieved with no new costs for individual drivers,” Adams said in his address.
Adams will likely implement the plan through the Taxi and Limousine Commission, which manages the city’s rideshare industry, including Uber and Lyft.
NYC isn’t the only place in the country that has mandated all Uber and Lyft vehicles to be 100 percent electric. In 2021, the state of California adopted a new rule that required rideshare companies to make their entire fleets electric by 2030. Both New York State and California will also ban the sale of new gas engines starting in 2035, according to Car Scoops.
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