
Uber cars seized amid crackdown on illegal pickups - nissimk
http://nypost.com/2015/06/16/hundreds-of-uber-cars-seized-for-illegal-pickups/
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rayiner
Note that these seizures are for picking up passengers in response to street
hails, not pre-arranged pickups. That is against Uber's own policy as well as
the regulations.

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asift
Worth noting that it's only against Uber's policy because this is one
stronghold of the taxi cartel Uber hasn't been able to crack (and partially
how Uber initially differentiated themselves to argue existing regulations
shouldn't apply to their service). But a fundamental question remains, why
shouldn't I be able to hail an Uber driver off the street or at an airport?
There is no valid reason other than it undermines the rents that incumbent
firms and bureacrats are generating from anti-consumer regulations.

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CPLX
Because hailing drivers who will then stop in a street full of cars trying to
drive somewhere is inherently disruptive and unsafe, at least most of the
time. It's challenging with taxis too, but those at least are bright yellow
with extra flashing lights on the roof, and theoretically some extra training
or at least experience.

If you live in NYC you'll learn quickly that there are a lot of rules and
regulations that are just necessary because of the sheer number of people
here. Other closely analogous situations are the ruthlessness of parking
enforcement, or the draconian laws about street vending, and so on.

People here do understand that the sort of laissez faire approach that would
theoretically be more "free" for everyone is not necessarily feasible in a
city this dense and interconnected.

~~~
jacquesm
So all uber drivers would have to do is paint their cars yellow and stick
flashing lights on the roof and it would be ok?

Really, I find it hard to believe this is about safety and not about
economics.

~~~
CPLX
It's about both, clearly. I was responding to this comment:

> There is no valid reason other than it undermines the rents...

And I pointed out that yes, actually there are other valid reasons.

Not having every square inch of city streets covered by circling taxis and for
hire cars is another reason.

The fact that taxis have regulated and inspected meters that prevent people
from getting ripped off on the fare charged is yet another reason (and an
excellent one I might add).

~~~
Vraxx
In response ot the inspected meters.

You can see a fare estimate on the app before you even call in an uber. I
think if they were able to do pickups, the driver's phone could easily display
some sort of meter for riders, and even do predictions before transaction is
even confirmed.

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rdlecler1
A city doesn't cap the number of restaurants. Why should they cap the number
of Uber drivers, or taxis for that matter. When the city puts a cap on taxi
licenses that means that the license owners get to charge a fee to their
drivers so drivers don't get the benefits of less competition just rent
seekers.

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TylerE
Because having supply > demand is bad, resulting in cars idling in the
streets, increasing pollution and gridlock.

~~~
lsllc
Why? it won't last for long ... it'll balance out as drivers realize it's not
profitable.

Let market forces do their job. It's reasonable for government to regulate
safety, but not supply.

~~~
TylerE
You're assuming it's a binary condition.

I think there is a substantial gap between "excessive supply" and "SO much
excess supply that the drivers are losing money".

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jrockway
> “Our officers noted an uptick in illegal activity attributable to licensed
> for-hire vehicles acting outside their authority,” said agency spokesman
> Allan Fromberg. “And seizures have a greater deterrent value than summonses
> alone.”

So are they going to seize the yellow cabs driving in the bike lanes now too?

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nissimk
Interesting how the trade group is pushing for more regulation of uber:

Bhairavi Desai, who reps both yellow cab and Uber drivers for the union.

Desai wants the TLC to cap the number of Uber drivers allowed to operate in
the city, and require the app to give them a minimum fare requirement, as well
as a guaranteed number of trips.

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falcolas
Sounds like Uber needs to start hacking politics a bit more if it wants to
continue operating. Trying to skirt the law is working less and less for them.

~~~
vtlynch
>hacking politics

