The Transport Workers Union Local 100 (TWU) has allied with pedicab drivers to oppose a city plan that would prohibit them from operating below 85th Street in Central Park. This restriction is part of a broader deal aimed at reducing the number of horse-drawn carriages and establishing a new stable in the park by 2018. The agreement, negotiated between the Teamsters Union, representing the carriage industry, and Mayor Bill de Blasio, did not initially consider the impact on pedicab drivers, prompting TWU’s intervention.
TWU President John Samuelsen criticized the exclusion of pedicab drivers from the negotiations, emphasizing the union’s commitment to safeguarding their jobs and opposing the legislation that threatens their livelihoods. The union plans to provide pedicab drivers with training, legal advice, and support to contest the ban, which they argue would significantly harm their ability to earn an income, especially since their primary business area is below the 85th Street Transverse.
Mayor de Blasio justified the restriction as a means to “balance” competing uses of the park, though critics argue that the decision adversely affects hundreds of workers without sufficient justification. The City Council is expected to conduct a public hearing and vote on the bill, with pedicab drivers and TWU seeking to have their voices heard in the legislative process. Pedicab drivers, many of whom are immigrants, are calling for inclusivity and a reconsideration of the plan that they believe unfairly targets their trade.
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