UC Merced Magazine | Commemorative Chronicle

David Do ’09 Commissioner and chair New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission

Yellow cabs are as deeply etched into New York City’s image as Times Square and foldable slices of pizza. More than 10,000 of them roam the boroughs’ streets, coexisting with tens of thousands of rideshare vehicles from Uber and Ly . David Do ’09 leads what is known in New York as the Taxi & Limousine Commision (TLC). e commission regulates and oversees the city’s for-hire transportation, including taxis, rideshares, livery vehicles and limousines. New York is the nation’s only city with regulations that cover Uber and Ly as well as taxis and limos. “We’re incredibly unique,” he said. e commission has worked to help drivers earn a living wage. At least half of the yellow taxis are now wheelchair-accessible, and TLC is pushing Uber and Ly to follow along. e commission also is working to phase in more electric vehicles. Do’s parents were among the Vietnamese people who ed the country a er the war ended and settled in the United States. His parents’ lives inform his empathy for drivers. “Over 95% of New York City’s drivers are immigrants. ey came to the United States to nd a path to the middle class,” he said. “I took on this role because I wanted to represent them.” In 2022, Do took the required class and paid the fees to qualify as a taxi driver. He gets behind the wheel now and again; his experiences are documented on TLC’s YouTube channel.

“I’m not going to fully understand a driver’s life and what they go through,” he said, “but I’ve had more of a glimpse of it than any commissioner before me.” Once a Bobcat... Do was part of the student-led e ort to invite First Lady Michelle Obama to the 2009 UC Merced commencement. One day, Do took a phone call in the student government o ce. e caller stated they were “So I was like, ‘Please hold,’ and ran,” Do said. He searched for his friends with no success. When he got back to the phone, the caller had hung up. " at was our rst inkling that it might happen,” Do said. Weeks later, the White House made it o cial. Before the ceremony, Do and others had a private meeting with Michelle Obama. “ ere I was, hugging the First Lady of the United States,” he recalled. Do said he took to heart some words from Michelle Obama’s speech. “She said sometimes you have to reach back and li someone onto your shoulders so they can see what you have seen,” Do said. “I think about who I can mentor and how I can build people up so they can have the opportunities I’ve had.” on a secure line and asked to speak with the campaign’s leaders. Neither was in the o ce.