No Place to Park to Pee: At City Hall Today New York’s Rideshare Drivers Called for Parking for Restroom Breaks & Other Work Breaks

100 Rideshare Drivers with the Independent Drivers Guild Gathered at City Hall this Morning with Council Member Justin Brannan to Fight for Short-Term Parking Access for the City’s 80,000 Uber & Lyft Drivers
City Council Hearing Held Today on Bill that would Allow NYC FHV Drivers to Pay to Use Commercial Parking Spaces
New York, NY – Uber and Lyft drivers get New Yorkers where they need to go, completing more than half a million trips each day in New York City and close to 20 million trips per month. Rideshare drivers need breaks like other workers: restroom breaks, breaks for meals, coffee or prayers, or simply a moment to rest and stretch their backs and legs. However, for years, New York City has failed to designate adequate space for these workers to park in order to meet these basic needs. The result: lost pay and negative health impacts for FHV drivers and increased traffic congestion and pollution for all New Yorkers as drivers scramble to find parking, often leaving Manhattan. The Independent Drivers Guild (IDG) is fighting to change that.
The Drivers Guild, which represents the city’s 80,000 Uber and Lyft drivers, has partnered with Council Member Justin Brannan on a city council bill (Int.1000) that would increase parking access for the city’s for-hire vehicle drivers by allowing them to park in areas designated for commercial vehicle parking. Specifically, the legislation would authorize the city’s licensed FHV drivers to park or stand in empty commercial parking metered spaces for up to 30 minutes, up to four times a day. They would still have to feed the meter, increasing revenue for the city on underused spaces.
Currently, there are only 31 FHV parking zones in Manhattan for the city’s 80,000 FHV drivers, equating to one for every 2,580 drivers. By contrast, there are thousands of parking spaces across Manhattan designated for commercial vehicles, with “Commercial Vehicles Only” metered parking areas located on more than 600 blocks across the borough.
About 100 IDG members (rideshare drivers) gathered on the steps of City Hall September 15th with bill sponsor Council Member Justin Brannan and co-sponsoring Council Members to rally for the legislation ahead of a 10 AM hearing on the bill. IDG Members, clad in bright blue shirts, also filled City Council Chambers, overflowing to the balcony to support the bill. Intro 1000 Co-sponsors include: Amanda Farías, Mercedes Narcisse, Chris Banks, Gale A. Brewer, Sandy Nurse, Chi A. Ossé, Farah N. Louis, and Susan Zhuang. Many Guild members waved signs with calls to action for the city leaders such as “Breaks Are a Right, Not a Luxury” and “We Drive the City – Let Us Take a Break”.
NYC’s FHV parking space shortage has caused serious and widespread harm. Lack of parking for work breaks has cost rideshare drivers financially, with lost wages and parking tickets, and it’s caused serious health problems like “Taxicab Syndrome” and chronic stress that are shaving years off the lives of these workers. It’s also increased traffic congestion, rideshare wait times and fatigued and distracted driving, which undermines safety for all New Yorkers. See more on these impacts below.
“Thirty-one FHV parking zones for 80,000 rideshare drivers is crazy. Finding a place to park is almost impossible in the city. Imagine if you had to park in Manhattan every time you had to use a bathroom or stretch your legs or get a bite to eat, 12 hours a day, 6 days a week, month after month, year after year. That is the grueling reality we are living,” said IDG Member Liakat Ali of Queens, who has worked as an Uber and Lyft driver since 2015. “I have to put off restroom breaks for hours, sometimes 5 or 6 hours. I worry about how it will impact my health, but it’s that or risk a $115 parking ticket. Being able to use the open commercial vehicle spots would make a massive difference for thousands of drivers like me.”
Putting off restroom breaks for several hours a day can cause significant health problems and can be particularly challenging for women drivers and drivers with diabetes, like Ali who also worries about how it impacts his health.
“What most workers see as an ordinary meal break or restroom break can be a nerve-wracking dilemma for our city’s rideshare drivers. With so few designated parking spaces, rideshare drivers often can’t get to legal parking when they need it. A simple restroom break then turns into a lengthy trip across a bridge or tunnel, or a hefty parking ticket, costing them most of a day’s earnings. By opening up access to existing commercial vehicle parking, we can bring meaningful relief to the 80,000 Uber and Lyft drivers who keep our city moving,” said Council Member Justin Brannan.
“Work breaks, especially restroom and meal breaks, are the most fundamental worker rights. They’re basic human needs. But with nowhere to park to take a break, tens of thousands of New York City rideshare workers are still struggling to get work and bathroom breaks in 2025. It’s shameful and city leaders need to act,” said Brendan Sexton, President of the Independent Drivers Guild, an affiliate of the Machinists Union that represents New York’s rideshare drivers.
“This bill would provide desperately needed relief to more than 80,000 New Yorkers who make their living as rideshare drivers. Allowing for-hire vehicle drivers to use underutilized commercial parking spaces would finally help drivers take the breaks they need for their health and safety. It would also reduce traffic congestion and expenses for drivers while increasing meter revenue to the city, and cutting wait times for passengers,” added Sexton.
“For-hire vehicles are on the road every day providing an in-demand service to the people. Just as delivery trucks move goods, they move people — often directly to the stores and restaurants that strengthen our economy and keep our neighborhoods thriving,” said Majority Leader Amanda Farías. “If commercial vehicles are given regulated access to commercial parking zones, it is only fair to extend a similar opportunity to for-hire vehicle drivers.”
Dr. Sarah Battistich, a board-certified emergency medicine physician and Director of IDG’s Worker Healthy Living program said, “One of the trademarks of a modern society is regular access to clean drinking water and sanitary bathrooms; denying access to these basic services can create a public health issue. Without easy access to clean restrooms, people run the risk of contracting bladder and urinary tract issues, as well as bowel problems. For-hire vehicle drivers keep our city running. Ensuring that drivers have access to facilities to eat, rest, and use the bathroom is about treating them as the essential workers they are, and will be a powerful step toward treating them with the dignity and respect they deserve.”
No Place to Park to Pee (or Pray, or Eat, or Rest, or Stretch):
NYC’s FHV Parking Shortage Has Caused Serious & Widespread Harm
Increased Traffic Congestion & Longer Wait Times for Passengers: Thousands of drivers circling the blocks, hunting for a place to park, leads to increased traffic congestion for all New Yorkers and can increase wait times for rideshare passengers. Currently, the lack of parking forces many drivers to have to leave Manhattan, thus increasing bridge and tunnel traffic and environmental damage while costing drivers lost wages and increased expenses.
Lost Wages and Costly Parking Tickets: FHV Drivers lose out on earnings as they search for a place to park. They are often forced to briefly illegally park to jump into an establishment to use a bathroom only to get a ticket that wipes out a full day’s pay. (And unlike food delivery workers, restaurants are not required to allow drivers to use their bathrooms). Drivers may also be forced to travel to far-flung neighborhoods or even leave Manhattan, incurring costly tolls and gas expenses adding congestion to the city’s bridges and tunnels.
“Taxicab Syndrome” & Severe Health Impacts: The inability to take timely breaks for personal needs has serious health implications. There is even a syndrome deemed “Taxicab Syndrome” – for the numerous health problems seen in for-hire vehicle drivers due to lack of breaks and restroom access. Studies have shown that FHV drivers experience higher rates of chronic diseases, like diabetes, and have shorter life expectancies than other workers.
Distracted & Fatigued Driving Undermines Safety for All: Everyday thousands of NYC FHV drivers are unable to easily park and take the breaks they need. This has undoubtedly led to high stress for FHV drivers and increased distracted and fatigued driving, making the city’s streets less safe for all New Yorkers.
About the Independent Drivers Guild
The IDG is a nonprofit affiliate of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW), and our organization represents over 140,000 for-hire vehicle drivers in New York State and 300,000 in Connecticut, New Jersey, Florida and Illinois. We are Uber and Lyft drivers united for a more fair industry. The Guild’s organizing has secured landmark victories that put billions of dollars in the pockets of drivers, including requiring a tipping option in the Uber app and winning the nation’s first livable minimum wage for rideshare drivers in New York City. The Guild also secured the first restrooms at New York City’s airport ride-hail lots, winning the first porta-potties for FHV drivers at JFK airport in 2017 and running water restroom trailers and prayer space at JFK, LGA and EWR in 2019.
The Drivers Guild and Machinists Union have led the nation in advocating for benefits and protections for FHV drivers. In 1999, the Machinists Union advocated to create the NYS Black Car Fund, establishing a workers’ compensation fund for New York’s for-hire vehicle drivers. In 2016, the Machinists helped drivers form the Independent Drivers Guild which has successfully advocated for and won a series of new protections and benefits through the program, including free vision, dental, health clinics, telemedicine, disability insurance and the Guild’s mental health counseling program, developed specifically for FHV drivers in response to New York’s driver suicide crisis. The IAMAW is the only union to successfully organize black car workers in New York City and has been doing so since the 1990’s.
Learn more at DriversGuild.org and follow us at https://x.com/DrivingGuild