Taxis and ride-sharing in Toronto

[ksun]

Sad thing is, the taxi industry almost has nobody that stand behind them. Probably 99.5% of the consumers support Uber.
What's the point of fighting a losing war against tide? Everyone knows that's not about the law, it is about greed and suppression of competition. I have zero compassion for the taxi drivers. Time to get a real job the city actually needs. Taxis will be obsolete like typewriters.

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

I do feel bad for some of the drivers - considering driving a taxi is like one of the low-skilled occupations available for immigrants and it is getting eroded. That said, the policy solution isn't to prop up the industry for a service that is fundamentally poor.

AoD

 

[MetroMan]

The good news Alvin is that Uber is starting to make it easy for these taxi drivers to abandon the exploitation that cab license owners are inflicting on them. Not every cab driver owns a car but those who do have an easy choice. Drive their own car under Uber.

I was in an Uber last night and the driver told me that his dad is a cabbie and has already begun borrowing his son's car when he's not working in his cab. When I asked him why his dad doesn't just drive for Uber full time, he said it came down to "teaching an old dog new tricks" but that there isn't any reason why cabbies who don't own their licenses shouldn't just move en masse to Uber or Uber-like services.

I give it a couple more years tops before we see a major cab company shut down.

 

[Napoleon]

I have zero compassion for the taxi drivers. Time to get a real job the city actually needs. Taxis will be obsolete like typewriters.

I'm a big supporter of Uber, but have a little compassion for the taxi drivers. The ones working for the big companies don't make that much money themselves and are the real losers in this battle. Some form of taxi/uber is going to be around for a long time, so I wouldn't quite write it off like the typewriter yet.

 

[salsa]

Mammo will be providing bagels.

reporterdonpeat 8:17am via Twitter Web Client
Today at #Toronto City Hall - Taxi Action says taxi drivers will start a hunger strike at 9 a.m. to protest Uber.

The hunger strikers say they plan to stay outside city hall until Uber halts operations in Toronto. Okay then.

 

[muller877]

I'm amazed....a large number of Urban Toronto users are supporting Hudak's position in his private member's bill about the sharing economy.

Looking outside my window for the flying pig to go by....

 

[BMO]

The good news Alvin is that Uber is starting to make it easy for these taxi drivers to abandon the exploitation that cab license owners are inflicting on them. Not every cab driver owns a car but those who do have an easy choice. Drive their own car under Uber.

I was in an Uber last night and the driver told me that his dad is a cabbie and has already begun borrowing his son's car when he's not working in his cab. When I asked him why his dad doesn't just drive for Uber full time, he said it came down to "teaching an old dog new tricks" but that there isn't any reason why cabbies who don't own their licenses shouldn't just move en masse to Uber or Uber-like services.

I give it a couple more years tops before we see a major cab company shut down.

And this is exactly the issue with Uber. If everyone moves over to Uber isn't history just repeating itself? Replacing one monopoly with another? This is what I'm really scared for. Already I find it oddly difficult to find an Uber for a normal price during peak hours and I have no idea where they get some of these charge increases from (I once saw a 3.5 x the regular fare which is more than a regular taxi). We need competition and let's not be foolish in thinking Uber is inherently better, they are just better NOW because they need to gain support and get rid of the taxi industry. Once that's done you'll quickly see how prices start going up and we're back at step 1 again.

 

[gabe]

And this is exactly the issue with Uber. If everyone moves over to Uber isn't history just repeating itself? Replacing one monopoly with another? This is what I'm really scared for. Already I find it oddly difficult to find an Uber for a normal price during peak hours and I have no idea where they get some of these charge increases from (I once saw a 3.5 x the regular fare which is more than a regular taxi). We need competition and let's not be foolish in thinking Uber is inherently better, they are just better NOW because they need to gain support and get rid of the taxi industry. Once that's done you'll quickly see how prices start going up and we're back at step 1 again.

Uber is the Wal-Mart of transportation.

 

[MetroMan]

And this is exactly the issue with Uber. If everyone moves over to Uber isn't history just repeating itself? Replacing one monopoly with another? This is what I'm really scared for. Already I find it oddly difficult to find an Uber for a normal price during peak hours and I have no idea where they get some of these charge increases from (I once saw a 3.5 x the regular fare which is more than a regular taxi). We need competition and let's not be foolish in thinking Uber is inherently better, they are just better NOW because they need to gain support and get rid of the taxi industry. Once that's done you'll quickly see how prices start going up and we're back at step 1 again.

Uber is the trailblazer for other ride sharing companies to become established. Hailo had to exit North America because they simply weren't big enough to fight the legal battles that Uber is fighting. Once a legal framework is established, it won't take long before other apps start popping up, providing the competition that we'll need to keep Uber honest.

As for surge prices, they're determined mathematically by the demand for cars vis-a-vis those currently on the road in your area. Demand exceeding the number of cars means the prices go up by that factor. It's not a made up number. This encourages off duty Uber drivers to get on the road because they'll make more money and supply then meets the demand so every passenger who is willing to pay the premium will get a car.

 

[pstogios]

Uber is the trailblazer for other ride sharing companies to become established. Hailo had to exit North America because they simply weren't big enough to fight the legal battles that Uber is fighting. Once a legal framework is established, it won't take long before other apps start popping up, providing the competition that we'll need to keep Uber honest.

As for surge prices, they're determined mathematically by the demand for cars vis-a-vis those currently on the road in your area. Demand exceeding the number of cars means the prices go up by that factor. It's not a made up number. This encourages off duty Uber drivers to get on the road because they'll make more money and supply then meets the demand so every passenger who is willing to pay the premium will get a car.

Economics 101.

 

[BMO]

Uber is the trailblazer for other ride sharing companies to become established. Hailo had to exit North America because they simply weren't big enough to fight the legal battles that Uber is fighting. Once a legal framework is established, it won't take long before other apps start popping up, providing the competition that we'll need to keep Uber honest.

As for surge prices, they're determined mathematically by the demand for cars vis-a-vis those currently on the road in your area. Demand exceeding the number of cars means the prices go up by that factor. It's not a made up number. This encourages off duty Uber drivers to get on the road because they'll make more money and supply then meets the demand so every passenger who is willing to pay the premium will get a car.

I know how the peak factor is calculated I just find it funny how they can charge whatever they want and nobody is up in arms about it yet the Taxis have to stick with regulated pricing. If a Taxi told someone they were going to charge 3.5x as much as their regular fee because it's too busy and not worth it to take someone otherwise it'd be front news on the Star. It was more a comment than an actual question. But thank you for the information.

 

[Napoleon]

Uber is the trailblazer for other ride sharing companies to become established. Hailo had to exit North America because they simply weren't big enough to fight the legal battles that Uber is fighting. Once a legal framework is established, it won't take long before other apps start popping up, providing the competition that we'll need to keep Uber honest.

Exactly correct. If Uber gets too expensive, a competitor will come in with either lower prices, better service, or a combination of both.

San Francisco now has Uber, Lyft, and Sidecar plus a few upstarts.

 

[diminutive]

I know how the peak factor is calculated I just find it funny how they can charge whatever they want and nobody is up in arms about it yet the Taxis have to stick with regulated pricing. If a Taxi told someone they were going to charge 3.5x as much as their regular fee because it's too busy and not worth it to take someone otherwise it'd be front news on the Star. It was more a comment than an actual question. But thank you for the information.

It's an informational issue.

When a person is dealing with a cab 1-on-1 they can't tell if prices are reasonable relative to other cabs. If Cab X is charging a 2.5x premium, the passenger won't know if Cab Y is charging a lower premium and will be extremely suspicious.

With Uber, customers may not like premiums but they're at least sure that a given premium is in fact the best offer available at that given time and place.

Uber gives the customer more information, whereas in a lower-information cab market place customers' interests are protected through fixed prices.

(the same issue is even more prevalent with cab customers in foreign cities, where customers have even less market information and are willing to pay premiums for airport-hotel rides just to avoid getting ripped off.)

 

[salsa]

 

[Napoleon]

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Schadenfreude