LONDON — When Paul Mayclim first got behind the wheel of one of London’s iconic black cabs, he earned enough to pay his mortgage, for his wife to stay at home with the kids, and for one vacation a year.

After 26 years, that’s no longer the case. Instead of encouraging his sons to follow in his footsteps, he’s pushed them to go to college.

“All the years you put in, all the studying, then [new technology] comes along and your experience is worth nothing," Mayclim said.

This week's court case involving the ride-hailing app Uber was closely watched by many cabbies. Overwhelmingly white working-class men, black-cab drivers see themselves as the gold standard in the taxi trade, but they've have seen real incomes stagnate amid the demographic and technological changes that have swept the city.

On Tuesday, a British court gave Uber a 15-month probationary license, which will allow it to continue operating in London after being stripped in September of its previous license pending appeal. The company convinced a judge that it had made significant changes after the local regulator declared it was not a “fit and proper” business.

Paul Mayclim started driving a black cab in 1991. Rachel Elbaum / NBC News

Transport authorities had cited failings in Uber's approach to reporting serious criminal offenses and background checks on drivers. During the court hearing, Uber admitted the way it operated in London needed to change, and accepted that the initial decision to revoke its licence in September was correct.

Unsurprisingly, cabbies are some of Uber’s sharpest critics. They are quick to point out Uber’s failings, citing reports of sexual assault and other safety-related incidents as a top reason to take black cabs instead.

Still, Uber has passionate supporters, and around 3.6 million people regularly use the service. One Change.org petition to “save Uber in London” racked up more than 850,000 signatures.

Since Uber launched in 2012, it quickly ate into black cabs' business and become a way of life for many Londoners.

“It’s the waiting for a cab at night, not knowing if they will or will not stop, and many will not take anything but cash,” said frequent Uber passenger Sunny Singh, who explained that she felt black cabs often failed to pick up people of color. “It becomes multiple layers of difficulty and Uber cuts past it.”

There's also the appeal for Uber drivers, who don't have to take lengthy courses or pass strenuous tests like cabbies do. Chip Radoslavov drove for Uber from 2016 until April to make ends meet as he developed his web business.

“No other job has the freedom of Uber,” said Radoslavov, who is originally from Bulgaria and runs the blog Uber Driver London. “If things don’t work out [with my business] I always have the Uber safe net.”

London has seen the number of private-hire drivers in the city increase by 12 percent in the last three years to more than 113,000, 45,000 of which are Uber drivers. Private-hire drivers do not need to take a specialized exam and can get their license by passing an English test, as well as background and medical checks.