Two NYC taxi medallions sold last week for a record $705,000, reports NyPo.
That's what happens when a politically strong group influences a government related power center. NYC taxi owners are as politically connected as you can get. In a free market, the number of taxis on the streets of Manhattan would climb exponentially.
But because of the NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission, there is an artificial limit on the number of taxis and sky high fares result. The fares are so lucrative in fact that the right to own an NYC taxi (via medallion) has traded at continuing higher prices.
Without the TLC, which is there "to protect the consumer", there would be a lot more cabs and fares would collapse. But becasye of the TKC, the consumer is gouged with higher fares by those who have the privilege of having the right to own one of the limited number of cabs allowed by the TLC.
If there was a free market in the streets as well, taxis wouldn't climb exponentially because the price of using streets would naturally help ration the number of taxis. Bu
ReplyDeleteTaxis use a resource the government provides them for free (streets). Shouldn't the owner of a resource be allowed to create the rules of how they can be used? Isn't that a basic property right?
ReplyDeleteIn Hong Kong it's the same thing. A taxi license has a price tag of 800 000 USD now. In Macau it's around 400 000 to 450 000 USD.
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