The pressure is piling on Uber overseas, and now it is facing more domestic opposition as the City of Portland, Oregon has filed a lawsuit against the app-driven car service.
The lawsuit alleges that Uber has started operating private-for hire transportation services in the city, and it wants the court to declare that the San Franciso firm is subject to and in violation of the Private ... [ read the full article ]
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while safety can be a concern i see this as private citicens offering rides for money and making a business that helps them...
the Idea that only "X" number of taxis can operate in an area is a monopolistic view that goes against the American way
as for the rape in India... why haven't they arrested the driver? if a taxi driver were to rape someone here would them having paid tens of thousands of dollars for their medallion allow them to go unpunished? of course not! does lack that medallion prove the driver is a rapist? again of course not.
customers having a choice is the only way that we will be better in everything we do... marketplace is the way customers vote what they like... sure a medallion can be used to say who can use taxi stands but to prevent people from creating other ways to find a ride is downright unAmerican
Originally posted by qazwiz: while safety can be a concern i see this as private citicens offering rides for money and making a business that helps them...
the Idea that only "X" number of taxis can operate in an area is a monopolistic view that goes against the American way
as for the rape in India... why haven't they arrested the driver? if a taxi driver were to rape someone here would them having paid tens of thousands of dollars for their medallion allow them to go unpunished? of course not! does lack that medallion prove the driver is a rapist? again of course not.
customers having a choice is the only way that we will be better in everything we do... marketplace is the way customers vote what they like... sure a medallion can be used to say who can use taxi stands but to prevent people from creating other ways to find a ride is downright unAmerican
I disagree with your contention. If any Tom, Dick and Harry is allowed to provide point to point taxi service in their free time the medallions would not be worth what they are made of. Also most limousine services would soon go out of business. What would be the basis for fixing waiting time and distance based fares? What about all the unaccounted and untaxed income generated? How would the IRS view this? Licensing and regulations are there for a reason.
the only statement of yours that has a shade of fact in it is: "Licensing and regulations are there for a reason." and the reason i say 'a shade' is that the reason usually is less "public safety" concerns and thus closer to "Lets give the government more money from the pockets of hard working citizens!"
but lets look at your claims point by point
Quote:"If any Tom, Dick and Harry is allowed to provide point to point taxi service in their free time the medallions would not be worth what they are made of."
the fact is that if i gave you a million dollars, "the medallions would not be worth what they are made of." ... also If pigs could fly then "the medallions would not be worth what they are made of." and if the sun comes out tomorrow "the medallions would not be worth what they are made of." I wouldn't give two cents for that crap
the fact is that the only value in that hunk of metal is to the government issuing that crap. it creates a monopoly that raises prices and prevents any tom dick and harry from earning an honest living by allowing the overpaid politicians to be bribed via bloated fees to buy into the monopoly.
I also might suggest that you stop driving taxi since your premise suggests that you lean that way. (try a limo instead)
on to your next misconception:
Quote:"Also most limousine services would soon go out of business."
no one goes out of business because they have less regulation. a service goes out of business because they have less service than their competition. this is a digress from the subject too so i should point out that taxis and limos are two different things think of a general statement that typically applies to the customers of each.... for taxis: "I am here and I need to be there as quickly as possible and as efficiently as possible" meanwhile the typical limo rider would say: "WE are out to have fun tonight so WE are dressed to the nines"
the typical taxi is a "now i need one" thing while the limo usually is a "in the future we will need one" thing also limo implies an elegance that a taxi simply doesn't exude.
don't bother saying "not always" to my generalization either... I'm talking super-majority here not unanimous consent
back to the reason.... shoddy service and mistreating customers will lose you your business faster than unlimited competition. and government regulation will cost you more than it is worth over a totally unregulated system where you can actually work for a living instead of pay for a monopoly.
next
Quote:"What would be the basis for fixing waiting time and distance based fares?"
(hope everyone notices the false premise slipped in by that question)
where in the world is the law that says we need price fixing... actually, taxis are one of the few places that it isn't a FELONY... all due to its monopoly. If I charged $10 wouldn't you like to charge $9.75? you would get more takers. that is called competition a word opposite to what the taxi medallion stands for: MONOPOLY!
OH AND OF COURSE if the ride service you are using doesn't already have a way to calculate a fair fee in advance of entering the vehicle i suggest you just not enter... taxis, on the other hand, have so many ways to overcharge you that tire pressure alone could be responsible for three different charges for the same ride on top of which fiddling with the settings can double charge you and add gas fees that no longer apply
AND NOW FOR THE BIGGIE...
Quote: "What about all the unaccounted and untaxed income generated? How would the IRS view this?"
WHAT UNACCOUNTED AND WHAT UNTAXED INCOME?
if you know of a driver not reporting income.... report him... the IRS has a standing bounty for tipsters.
I resent your implication that if i didn't bribe the government to allow me to install a meter in my vehicle that can be jimmied to not report income.... that without such a device my income wouldn't be reported. ... on the contrary.... UBER AND OTHER ALTERNATE RIDE SYSTEMS ARE GEARED TO ZERO TAX EVASION!
i have seen taxis not turn on the meter and i have seen meters that didn't work correctly (not to mention the fraud i refered to earlier) BUT UBER (ET.AL.) act as a money middle man that not only reduces no pays and robberies but also eliminates tax evasion since all fares are paid via credit card through UBER system there is no cash transactions to worry if Uncle Sam does or doesn't have his hand in the working mans pocket
NOW LET US RETURN TO THE REGULATIONS AGAIN...
what regulations about driving apply to taxis that dont apply to other drivers... i can think of only one... taxi stands and other areas reserved for taxis... that is the only value of a medallion, use of restricted areas.
every driving law applies to both... although taxi drivers are often seen driving erratically and continuing to drive after repeated tickets for accidents and unsafe practices in vehicles that are driven over 23 hours a day (by just two drivers so about twelve hours each) with little safety maintenance
on the other hand the ride services are being driven by the owner for less hours (often just a few hours a week) and maintained on a regular basis with ease since it is off road so often.
sure both can be as big an asshole as the other if they want to but the personal experience of service vehicles not even providing bare service and expecting big tips for sitting on their ass as the customer gets their own packages... and not even answering the phone when a customer wants a ride tells me that the medallion monopoly needs to be broken.
