The Tyranny of Taxi Medallions
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The Tyranny of Taxi Medallions
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Re: The Tyranny of Taxi Medallions
#2Structurally this practice is a lot like the preindustrial precursor of taxation, when governments would sell monopolies on the import or production of things in exchange for a lump sum.
When obsolete government practices persist, they tend to be pretty sinister.
Re: The Tyranny of Taxi Medallions
#3Structurally this practice is a lot like the preindustrial precursor of taxation, when governments would sell monopolies on the import or production of things in exchange for a lump sum. When obsolete government practices persist, they tend to be pretty sinister.
Exactly. A majority of taxi drivers do not own medallions. But decades of being on a "wait list" for the right to buy one and FUD by taxi companies causes a lot of them to dislike ride sharing, when, in reality, it's a huge net win for them.
Re: The Tyranny of Taxi Medallions
#4Apart from all the obvious externalities of cab driving operations, the extremely high probability of fraud, and the fact that policing cabs is extraordinarily expensive, there's another problem a lot of these analyses miss about why cabs are regulated the way they are.
In many large cities, the taxi system is a fundamental component of the transport infrastructure. There are locations in most cities that are not efficiently or safely reachable via bus. Visitors to cities also tend to need point-to-point transit; it takes some know-how and a lot of flexibility to get from an airport to a business meeting in a near suburb, for instance. Taxicabs are effectively a privatized component of metro transport systems.
Cities therefore have a powerful interest in making sure that whatever else happens, there is a strata of taxi service available to all residents of the city at some predictable rate.
Re: The Tyranny of Taxi Medallions
#5Apart from all the obvious externalities of cab driving operations, the extremely high probability of fraud, and the fact that policing cabs is extraordinarily expensive, there's another problem a lot of these analyses miss about why cabs are regulated the way they are. In many large cities, the taxi system is a fundamental component of the transport infrastructure. There are locations in most cities that are not eff…
I don't know what taxis you ride in, but i routinely ride in medallion taxis that either use GPS or their iphone to figure out where to go. I've also had some claim that they're at the destination until I pull out my phone and point to them on the map where to go.
If you want to regulate taxis, you can still do that - but there is no reason to limit the supply of taxis.
Re: The Tyranny of Taxi Medallions
#6Apart from all the obvious externalities of cab driving operations, the extremely high probability of fraud, and the fact that policing cabs is extraordinarily expensive, there's another problem a lot of these analyses miss about why cabs are regulated the way they are. In many large cities, the taxi system is a fundamental component of the transport infrastructure. There are locations in most cities that are not eff…
As the other commenter pointed out, the problem is primarily with the supply limit on taxis. Not limiting the supply of cabs artificially would result in more supply for whoever needs a ride, arguably lower the cost of a ride and help with more revenue for policing.
Making sure that taxis pick up in poor neighborhoods is an important, tough, and long standing problem. It would be disingenuous to argue that the "market" will fix it on it's own but then laws requiring cab drivers stop for all customers are routinely flouted, so it is not the case that regulation can fix this problem either.
The problem with supply limits is that once they are in place, everyone involved, other than the customers, has a vested interest in keeping the limits where they are for decades regardless of an increase in demand.
Re: The Tyranny of Taxi Medallions
#7Apart from all the obvious externalities of cab driving operations, the extremely high probability of fraud, and the fact that policing cabs is extraordinarily expensive, there's another problem a lot of these analyses miss about why cabs are regulated the way they are. In many large cities, the taxi system is a fundamental component of the transport infrastructure. There are locations in most cities that are not eff…
Although I admit that you could use the arguments you put forth to make a case for regulation of the taxi industry I think you'd have a hard time justifying the existing medallion system based solely on those reasons.
The medallion system (like the car dealership system) is made to protect the incumbents. Period. There was no a priori argument that this was going to be good for the people of the city or that every citizen could expect a predictable rate and level of service. In fact, the complete opposite was true -- these regulations were born out of period with a glut of taxi labor and falling rates.
Re: The Tyranny of Taxi Medallions
#8annoyingly this link goes to the home page, not the actual article -- otherwise a good read.
Re: The Tyranny of Taxi Medallions
#9Apart from all the obvious externalities of cab driving operations, the extremely high probability of fraud, and the fact that policing cabs is extraordinarily expensive, there's another problem a lot of these analyses miss about why cabs are regulated the way they are. In many large cities, the taxi system is a fundamental component of the transport infrastructure. There are locations in most cities that are not eff…
What you are saying is fine, but that's not why taxi's were regulated, at least in New York. The regulations go back to the depression and were put in place specifically to limit competition in order to keep prices high and protect employment of existing cab drivers. The history is right on the NYC gov page:
http://www.nyc.gov/html/media/totweb/taxioftomorrow_history_...
--
quoting from the NYC site:
"Widespread poverty prompted many New Yorkers to opt for less-expensive forms of transportation, decreasing the demand for taxis. This put many companies out of business and caused many cabdrivers to lose their jobs. The situation was made worse by the tactics of “wildcat” (unlicensed) taxis who used what some considered to be “underhanded tactics,” such as drastically lowering fares, to get more business."
Re: The Tyranny of Taxi Medallions
#10Apart from all the obvious externalities of cab driving operations, the extremely high probability of fraud, and the fact that policing cabs is extraordinarily expensive, there's another problem a lot of these analyses miss about why cabs are regulated the way they are. In many large cities, the taxi system is a fundamental component of the transport infrastructure. There are locations in most cities that are not eff…
Policing cabs is vastly cheaper than the cost of a medallion.
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1650659
Cities therefore have a powerful interest in making sure that whatever else happens, there is a strata of taxi service available to all residents of the city at some predictable rate.
Limiting the supply of taxes reduces the likelihood that this will occur.
Not that NY has anything like the "universal service" you are hinting at, taxes rarely go above 125th st.