On Jan. 20, more than 80 members of the Independent Drivers Guild (IDG) descended on City Hall to call for the city to reverse its ban on rooftop advertising for For-Hire Vehicles (FHVs). The IDG testified at the City Council Transportation Committee’s hearing in favor of City Council bill Intro 1738, sponsored by Transportation Committee Chair Ydanis Rodriguez, which would allow FHV drivers “to earn much-needed extra pay through rooftop advertising.”
According to the IDG, “Exterior roof-top advertising opportunities are currently only afforded to medallion owners, but not FHV owner-operators, including drivers for app-based and livery services. Intro 1738 is the first of a handful of bills in the works to address the demands and concerns raised in IDG’s Drivers’ Bill of Rights, which has the support of more than nine thousand drivers so far.”
“For years, drivers have been struggling to make ends meet,” said IDG executive director Brendan Sexton. “Rooftop advertisements are an easy way for drivers to supplement their income without having to drive longer hours and add to congestion. An extra $300 per month can mean the difference between being able to afford health insurance or not. It can cover a month’s worth of fuel expenses or after school childcare. We are thankful to Chairman Ydanis Rodriguez and Members of the City Council Transportation Committee for listening to drivers and we urge the Council to support this bill as an important step to provide immediate and much-needed relief to drivers. We are also thankful that the Taxi and Limousine Commission today voiced support for rooftop ads with the amendment we have urged which would require that ad revenue goes to drivers, rather than Uber or Lyft, leasing companies, or big fleet owners, as has occurred in the taxi industry.”
Source:Independent Drivers Guild
