Taxicabs of the United States area. The president of United Cab discourages his drivers from carrying firearms, instead advising them to accelerate the car and crash into a lamppost or even a police car if they are threatened with a gun. Uber is a major competitor to taxi companies, providing on-demand for-hire car service through a smartphone app in many US cities. Uber services are generally treated as black-car services from a legal standpoint and are not generally regulated under Taxi laws. This can cause friction with both local governments and taxi companies. In June 2015, the city council voted unanimously to increase taxi fares;
Scruff (app) and transgender community. In 2014, the company won several mobile app awards including "Time Out" New York’s Best App Award. In 2014, the company launched BenevolAds, which gives $1 million of free in-app advertising, annually, to LGBTQ community nonprofits, sports teams, public health organizations and community partners. The program also works with AIDS organizations, health agencies, and the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention to educate users about HIV and other diseases and to encourage testing. In 2015, the company added a traveler alert feature that notifies users when they reach one of approximately 100 countries where homosexuality is criminalized,