The twisted taxi business

Super-fast post about Martin Cash's article in the Free Press on the taxi business in Winnipeg:

Since the beginning of the year, the going price for a taxi "medallion" has increased by 61 per cent, with a couple of recent transactions closing at a whopping $412,000.

Barry Prentice head of the of the U of M's Asper School of Business faculty:

"Where is the social policy of all this?" he said in an interview. "Why do we create a regulated cartel to charge high prices and control and reduce supply. Whose interest is that in? Does it serve the 410 taxi owners or the 650,000 people living in Winnipeg?"

My comments in the Freep:

Barry Prentice is bang-on. The extremely high prices for cab licenses is proof that the model is broken, and that there are too few cabs on the road. There is absolutely no reason for this industry to be regulated at all, except for basic requirements related to safety.

However, the longer you wait to deregulate the more difficult it will be, because so many cab owners have large sums of money invested in licenses. The government would likely have to compensate those owners at the cost of millions of dollars to the taxpayer if it were to deregulate. The gov't and the PUB need to get this under control now.

I've commented before about this, though I don't have time to dig up the links. This system is more than screwed up, and needs to get fixed before it gets any worse. The cost of a license in a deregulated system would be nominal, so some of the recent cabbies would lose hundreds of thousands of dollars if we were to deregulate. But we have to as a matter of free market principle and because the system is so disfunctional.

Let's see if former cabby Marty Gold puts a positive spin on this on his talk show.

What do all world class cities have?

A Human Rights museum? No. A partial recreation of a fort in their downtown? No. An IKEA? Maybe, but that's not what I'm looking for.

The answer: An airport shuttle!

Yes, that wonderful little convenient service that takes you from your hotel to the airport and from the airport to your hotel. All the big cities have one, therefore Winnipeg should have one too!

Seriously though, I have used shuttles before and they are a relatively cheap and easy way to get between specific destinations. They are good. They offer visitors to the city an alternative to booking a taxi, which is exactly why the taxi companies are doing all they can to stop it.

In the latest development in the 2 year saga of Avion trying to get a shuttle service launched, both sides argued their case in front of the Public Utilities Board. The de facto taxi duopoly of Duffy's and Unicity, who fought just as hard to restrict competition within the taxi industry, are fighting to prevent competition from outside of the taxi business. First, by arguing that shuttles were actually taxis, and now by claiming that "the airport is already well-served by taxis", mere months after aguing to keep more taxis off the road.

This is a business that is truly disfunctional and over-regulated, to the detriment of the consumer. The PUB shouldn't be involved in this at all, but since the city charter requires it, they should do no more than a rubber stamp the city's approval and allow this shuttle to finally get off the ground. Don't allow the taxi maffia to rule the roads!

*****

updates to my last post

> Two of the three young falcons started flying this weekend. Didn't notice if the third took off today, but she was staying put when I happened to check earlier.

> McPhelan is still an incompetent ass-hat and should be fired.

> Caught part of the Saturday Jazz Fest. Very good crowd and great weather. Bumped into Mr. Point from the NewWinnipeg forum. Looking forward to next year.

> Matt Hill made the cut in his first PGA tounament, the AT&T National. As an amateur he can't cash the cheque, but I'm sure there will be many more coming his way in the future.

News Roundup: Cabs, QBs, and megawatts

Duffy's, Unicity apply for new cab licences

The Manitoba Taxicab Board is nearing the end of extensive hearings that began nearly a year ago on applications for 800 more taxi licences. Today the board heard an application from Duffy’s and Unicity for any and all new licences the board may issue.

How much is this board costing us? Turn these hearings over to me and I'll save everybody money:

Duffy's/Unicity exec: "We would like to apply for 800 additional licenses for ..."
Me: "Go fuck yourself"

There. Done.

There's no reason for this board to even exist. With some basic standards and regulations in place the industry should be opened up to whoever wishes to participate, and customer demand will determine how many cabs are on the street. But, if we are going to regulate licenses, there's no way in hell any more should go to Duffy's or Unicity so that they can further entrench their duopoly. This is not a healthy way to run an industry.

Bombers trade for Esks' QB

I like that we're looking at moving Glenn and reworking the QB position, but why are we trading for another 3rd stringer? We have three of them already. We need a proven performer.

Of our current crop I like the look of Bryan Randall the most, but none of these guys have much experience.

Hydro eyeing historic buildings for new substation

I'm with rgalston on this one. Does this make any sense? Of all the parking lots and underutilized spaces in downtown Winnipeg, Hydro wants to put a substation here? That will certainly limit the revitalization potential of the area.

Down with Big Taxi

The big two taxi cab companies in town are at it again: trying to crush any competition to their duopoly. Competition is what makes our economy go 'round. It's a good thing. Open up the damn market and let it regulate itself. If some drivers want to start a taxi co-op, let 'em. It can only lead to improved service for the public, which is the bottom line after all.

Last time we saw Big Taxi get its panties in a knot, it was to protest an airport shuttle proposal. Imagine that -- an airport shuttle in a city that takes pride in being a transportation hub. What an outrageous idea. People like to throw around the term "World Class" in Winnipeg. Something as simple as an airport shuttle would do a lot more towards making Winnipeg a World Class city than any interpretive centre for a non-existent fort.

There is no good reason for this over-regulation of the industry. In fact, ditch the Taxi Cab Board completely and replace it with some basic regulations (minimum standards for cabs, etc.) and let the market work. It will be ok. Trust me.

Recommended reading: This column from Peter Holle.