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> All the laws regulating taxi-like services were enacted because of abuses before they existed. I'm not convinced. What does the hour pre-booking requirement

> All the laws regulating taxi-like services were enacted because of abuses before they existed. I'm not convinced. What does the hour pre-booking requirement in Miami do to prevent previous abuses? What does the business test that drivers have to pass in Germany do to prevent previous abuses? What does NYC's 30+ day process to get the correct license do to prevent previous abuses? These all seem like laws regulating taxi-like services only for the benefit of making taxis more competitive. The taxi industry in NYC has given the mayor over $500,000. Presumably they're looking to get laws passed (like the proposed cap on uber) in order to protect themselves, not to prevent abuses that previously existed. Maybe it's helpful to talk about what the previous abuses were, and then look at what are the best solutions to that in a world where everyone has smartphones. I'm not convinced that all (or even most) of the regulations out there are to prevent previous abuses, but maybe I'm missing something here.

forgetsusername 11y ago
>The taxi industry in NYC has given the mayor over $500,000 You say this as if Uber isn't heavily involved in lobbying for their own benefit. I'll consider Uber to be on a level-playing field when I can be certain that any car I climb into has the proper insurance required for transporting people commercially. Right now it seems like Uber is putting that responsibility on the drivers themselves (which, I suppose, is their right). But I believe that's a huge cost advantage (with associated externalities when someone is hurt badly).
- viscanti 11y ago
  > You say this as if Uber isn't heavily involved in lobbying for their own benefit. No. I say it to point out that there are laws that aren't for the public good. At that point, we're free to have an open discussion about which laws are for the public good and which aren't. If we start by assuming all laws are enacted to prevent previous abuses, we miss a key point here.
germanier 11y ago
> What does the business test that drivers have to pass in Germany do to prevent previous abuses? They ask questions like "What insurance do I need?" and "Which taxes do I need to pay?". All those things Uber is good at... The test was introduced after many small taxi companies failed to do even the most basic accounting. Not every driver needs to pass these tests but the employer. If you claim your drivers are all "independent" contractors, well that's another problem.

forgetsusername 11y ago

>The taxi industry in NYC has given the mayor over $500,000 You say this as if Uber isn't heavily involved in lobbying for their own benefit. I'll consider Uber to be on a level-playing field when I can be certain that any car I climb into has the proper insurance required for transporting people commercially. Right now it seems like Uber is putting that responsibility on the drivers themselves (which, I suppose, is their right). But I believe that's a huge cost advantage (with associated externalities when someone is hurt badly).

viscanti 11y ago
> You say this as if Uber isn't heavily involved in lobbying for their own benefit. No. I say it to point out that there are laws that aren't for the public good. At that point, we're free to have an open discussion about which laws are for the public good and which aren't. If we start by assuming all laws are enacted to prevent previous abuses, we miss a key point here.

germanier 11y ago

> What does the business test that drivers have to pass in Germany do to prevent previous abuses? They ask questions like "What insurance do I need?" and "Which taxes do I need to pay?". All those things Uber is good at... The test was introduced after many small taxi companies failed to do even the most basic accounting. Not every driver needs to pass these tests but the employer. If you claim your drivers are all "independent" contractors, well that's another problem.