Time is money, and TLC licensees understand that better than anyone. So, in April, we finalized upgrades to revitalize the TLC Driver License Renewal Course in ways that will save you class time and enhance the ways in which we offer our curriculum.
Thanks to feedback from thousands of drivers and instructors, we streamlined lessons that will save you up to two hours when you go for renewal every three years. Upgrades also include new immersive, real-world scenarios that will help keep TLC drivers the safest in the City.
The enhancements (implemented on April 1) also feature AI actors and interactive new video content with Vision Zero instruction that simulates situations around passenger safety, cyclists and weather hazards. You’re already some of the City’s savviest drivers, and this revamped class will only help your acumen and resources.
Meanwhile, our Uber and Lyft drivers continue to make history. As the world celebrated Earth Day on April 22, the TLC marked another milestone: the most EV trips (2.05 million!) we’ve had in a single month. March’s gains almost doubled the progress we’ve made since January, which was the first time we’d reached over a million EV trips. Since November 2023, EV trips have seen an over fivefold increase – up from 362K.
On top of our substantial sustainability gains, licensees are also riding the WAV. In March 2024, rideshare drivers completed the most WAV trips in the TLC’s history with 1.9 million – and a 32% increase from March 2023.
April also saw some big changes at JFK, where our dedicated Enforcement officers worked alongside the Queens District Attorney and the Port Authority to crack down on a reprehensible taxi dispatcher bribery scheme. We will always be on the lookout to preserve process and fairness for our licensees. The dispatch process should be even smoother now that the Port Authority has launched its new Virtual Taxi Dispatch program at JFK. With the app available to all drivers (visit https://www.jfkairport.com/announcements/virtual-taxi-dispatch-app), you can now queue right from your iPhone or Android smartphone to save time.
Lastly, May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, and as the son of immigrant parents who came to the US from Vietnam in the early 1980s after the war, my goal has been serving people who need it most. My focus will always be on equity and access, especially knowing that many taxi drivers in NYC are immigrants that come here looking for a better life. Increasing opportunities for drivers to have a path to the middle class, as well as a chance to be your own small business owners, will always be my priority.
See you out there,
David Do
Commissioner, NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission
