Lyft launching in New York City after concessions with regulators

Earlier this month, Lyft announced it was launching its regular-folks-as-taxi-drivers service in New York City (NYC). But regulators put the brakes on the launch and Lyft stated that is was going to work on getting approval from the the city’s Taxi and Limousine Commission.

Those negotiations appear to have been fruitful with Lyft announcing that it would be launching its ride sharing service in NYC starting this evening at 7pm ET. In a blog post it stated:

Tonight, after making positive progress with local and state leaders, Lyft will launch in all five boroughs of New York City. We’ve finalized an agreement to offer immediate access to our friendly, affordable rides through a TLC-licensed model beginning at 7 p.m. Lyft will serve all corners of the city from Manhattan to Staten Island, starting with a limited beta launch and then a full rollout in coming weeks

According to Recode, in order to launch its service, the company can only allow drivers that are licensed by the Taxi and Limousine Commission. In other words, the taxi drivers that are already dragging you around the city will be the same ones sporting a pink mustache on their car. So not really the shared-economy business plan the company is famous for.

The company also stated in the blog post that it will cease operations in Buffalo and Rochester by August 1 as it works to comply with the state’s insurance laws and regulations.

➤ Lyft Launches in NYC [Lyft]