Uber cars now outnumber taxis in New York City

Less than four years after Uber started operating in NYC, Uber vehicles now outnumber yellow taxis on the streets there, the New York Post reported Tuesday.

New data from NYC's Taxi & Limousine Commission indicates that Uber has 14,088 cars operating in NYC's five boroughs, and that there are 13,587 medallion taxis in the city.

Yellow cab drivers can also work for Uber using the company's uberT program, a taxi service accessible for Uber customers through the company's mobile platform. But uberT taxis aren't considered Uber cars in this case.

Uber launched in May 2011 in New York City. New York City is one of Uber's largest markets, and was the first city Uber expanded to outside of its hometown, San Francisco.

New York City has not been without obstacles for Uber. Some drivers have contested Uber's claims that they stand to make $90,000 a year driving in New York City for the service, and in January, New York City's Taxi & Limousine Commission briefly shut down five of Uber's six bases (a basically toothless penalty for an organization that dispatches its drivers remotely).

But Uber is no worse for any troubles it's had in New York. In fact, it's doing quite well there. According to a leaked internal document, in December 2013, Uber generated $26 million in New York City, or $312 million annually. Of course, that was more than a year ago, and those numbers would presumably be even higher today.