Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin

They didn't seek out the regulations, but they're definitely lobbying against the competition now. As early as 2014 (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2014/07/31/the-t...) and specifically in Europe they merged taxi unions to form a united lobbying front a few days ago (https://motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/ezpqne/european-t...).

And who can blame them, really. When it costs thousands of dollars to get a medallion, you want to protect your investment and do whatever you can to maximize your profits.



> And who can blame them, really. When it costs thousands of dollars to get a medallion, you want to protect your investment and do whatever you can to maximize your profits.

AFAIK, in most places in Europe a taxi license costs tens or hundreds of dollars, not thousands. (There are exceptions, of course, most famously London where the cost is more in time than in direct money, and Paris where licenses are sold second-hand for hundreds of thousands.)


A NY Medallion was going for over a million before Uber came along (now ~$850k). Wait lists are typically longer than 10 years.


OK, but the article is about Europe. So European prices are relevant, not New York prices.


It’s not just the cost of the license. In the US, and presumably in Europe, taxi rates are set by the government. Taxis can’t use things like surge pricing to maximize revenues.


Well, when a city forces you to buy a license and then lets everyone else compete for free, they are rightfully pissed.

The solution is governments reimbursing the licenses and just letting everyone do whatever they want.

I don't blame them for wanting the government to hold up their end of the bargain. That doesn't make the taxi companies the bad guys.

Shit in cities that allow Uber, if you drive a taxi without a license you STILL get fined.




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: