Search Results

To Listen to Audio click the Play Button [beneath each segment] which varies based on the browser you are using.

November 12, 2014

Title: Houston City Council is Meddling with Free Enterprise - Again
Topic: Ridesharing

Discussed by Jess Fields
with Texas Public Policy Foundation (www.TexasPolicy.com)

Yellow Taxis have been carting people around for decades. You can call them when you have had too much to drink and can’t drive home. You can catch a ride to the airport. People who don’t have cars use a cab to get to work and even to the grocery store.

There are several new alternatives to taxis available now. Two of the more popular ones (which happen to already be multimillion companies) are Uber and Lyft. Jess Fields explains how you can use an app on your smart phone to catch a ride from someone in your area. These are normal, everyday people who are using their own personal vehicle to drive people around. They are licensed and insured. They must pass a background check and not convicted felons. So what’s the beef?

One of the biggest advantages Uber and Lyft and other private companies have over Yellow Can are their inexpensive rates. This obviously has the Yellow Cab drivers up in arms. They can also call or text you to let you know approximate pick up time and rate cost.

Jess Fields says that the taxi industry is heavily guarded by the government and operates almost like a cartel. Taxi companies in Houston have lobbied City Council to make it more expensive for other taxi-type services to operate. In fact, Lyft has decided to halt all services in Houston!

Is the Houston City Council bowing to the Taxi Cartel and trying to run these companies out of business? Listen in as Jess Fields describes the crazy insurance regulations and medical examinations that Houston is placing on the other taxi service companies – requirements Yellow Taxi drivers don’t even have to follow! Jess also explains how other cities are handling Uber and Lyft and other companies, regulations, and requirements.

More from this Guest      More on this Topic      More from this Organization