"Taxi monopolies" or "Why are there so many drunk drivers on the roads

[yukoncpa]

I don’t mind this discussion on vigilantism at all. Indeed I find it interesting. But please keep in mind that the purpose of my OP was that as a result of these taxi monopolies, many more drunks that would otherwise not drive, are driving. However, I realize there are all sorts of ramifications to my post, and I am definitely finding them interesting. Carry on everyone.

[MidGe]

[ QUOTE ]
I don’t mind this discussion on vigilantism at all. Indeed I find it interesting. But please keep in mind that the purpose of my OP was that as a result of these taxi monopolies, many more drunks that would otherwise not drive, are driving. However, I realize there are all sorts of ramifications to my post, and I am definitely finding them interesting. Carry on everyone.

[/ QUOTE ]

No worries, yukoncpa, that is the spirit in which I took it!

[yukoncpa]

[ QUOTE ]
I don’t mind this discussion on vigilantism at all. Indeed I find it interesting. But please keep in mind that the purpose of my OP was that as a result of these taxi monopolies, many more drunks that would otherwise not drive, are driving. However, I realize there are all sorts of ramifications to my post, and I am definitely finding them interesting. Carry on everyone.


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No worries, yukoncpa, that is the spirit in which I took it!



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Yes but Midge, you are a contentious poster, therefor it is critical that you disagree with me, otherwise, my thread will die, and I happen to think that this is an important thread.

Please pick apart segments of my text so that pvn, etc can have at you, and make for a lively discussion.

[ianlippert]

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As it turns out, there is some sort of wacko monopoly system on cabs in San Diego. Can anyone elaborate on this weirdness?

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Do you know how much a taxi license out there costs? Alaska sounds sweet!

[mosdef]

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As it turns out, there is some sort of wacko monopoly system on cabs in San Diego. Can anyone elaborate on this weirdness?

[/ QUOTE ]

Do you know how much a taxi license out there costs? Alaska sounds sweet!

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If you are considering the relative merits of San Diego and Alaska and you are considering primarily job opportunities as a taxi driver, I believe your analysis is overlooking some fairly significant factors.

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0762183.html

[Borodog]

yukoncpa,

Fantastic post. This is the kind of post we need more of.

The New York City taxi monopoly is notorious. Taxi companies.lobbied the city decades ago to require occupational licensure to stop the "ruinous competition". If I remember correctly, 11,000 licenses were originally issued. I think that number has increased by something like 400 in total over the past 40 years.

As a result, cab licenses now go for around $200,000. Cab rides are extremely expensive. Cabs are impossible to get when it is rainy, or during peak demand hours, or when black. Artificially limiting the supply of cabs easily let's cabbies exercise their racism without being punished by the market, sine you can pass by any nber of black men hailing because their is always whitey on the next corner hailing as well. Cabs with 3 empty seats will drive by without stopping for other passengers. Cabs are almost all owned by big cab companies since individuals cannot afford to take out a mortgage to get a cab license.

Contrast this with a city like DC, where anyone can get a cag license by showings driver's license, proof of insurance and paying some nominal fee of $35 or something. Cabs are everywhere, rides are cheap, cabs will pick up multiple riders, a black man can get a cab, etc. Students and immigrants become cabbies because it is a job that requires little capital investment and has total freedom of hours (not to mention the lack of a boss to report their wages to the IRS).

[tame_deuces]

I don't think I have even heard of examples of towns where the taxi company monopolies (over here they're kind of organized like umbrella companies for individual drivers, like exclusive clubs) are permitted where the corruption in the business isn't enormous. Fraud, tax evasion, unfair business tactics and ineffectiveness are mostly the result we see.

[Dan.]

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cabs will pick up multiple riders

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Slight hijack, but this is a huge pet-peeve of mine. If I'm opting for a cab over public transit, I don't want anyone else getting in the cab nor do I want to be the 2nd party.

[RedBean]

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As a result, cab licenses now go for around $200,000.

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Even worse, it's up to about 300-350k nowadays, hasn't been as "low" as 200k since the mid to late nineties.

By the time I finish this post, it may be at 375k.

You could invent an instant teleportation device (regional teleportation, obviously, playing by Dr Who transmat rules) and NYC would ban it's use inside the city in order to protect the cab monopoly.

Anyone know the penalty or fine for "running an illegal cab service"?

With licenses that steep and temptation that great, it's got to be some out of control fine.

[yukoncpa]

[ QUOTE ]
Do you know how much a taxi license out there costs? Alaska sounds sweet!



[/ QUOTE ] You need a cheuffeurs license in Alaska, plus it helps if you pay a dispatcher service a monthly fee. Incidently, I left AK before cell phone technology really took off, but while I was there, setting up shop as a dispatcher was fairly lucrative. Half the people I played poker with were cab drivers and loved their jobs. I don't think there is any other fee, but nowadays things could certainly be different.