HomeUploadUpload DirectHotlinkRandomAbouttheme toggle
Expand

Uber and the Great Taxicab Collapse

Views:972
@ReasonVids

When Andrew Murstein hired pop music super star Nicki Minaj to headline his son Matt’s Bar Mitzvah, it was an unusually conspicuous flaunting of wealth by one of New York City's leading taxi cab magnates. Newsweek estimates that Minaj might have been paid as much as half a million for the gig, which entailed taking a personal photo with every single boy and girl in attendance.

Andrew Murstein’s vast wealth derives from a shrewd decision that his grandpa Leon made 78 years ago. In 1937, New York City issued what ultimately amounted to 13,437 taxi medallions—a special kind of license that conferred the exclusive right to drive a cab in the Big Apple. And Leon Murstein bought one...for $10. And then he bought several hundred more to rent to other drivers.

From 1937 to 2013, the price of each of those medallions climbed from $10 to over a million dollars. Over the years, the city tried periodically to break the medallion cartel to make life easier on the riding public, but to no avail.

"Ultimately all that value that’s built up in the medallions comes from passengers,” says Josh Barro, a reporter with The New York Times, who covers the taxi industry. “Fares are higher than they otherwise would be able to be because you have to limit the number of people using these taxis."

And then in May of 2011, Uber began operating in New York City. For the next roughly two and a half years, the taxi industry kept thriving. In November 2013, Medallion Financial, the publicly traded company that’s run by Andrew Murstein, saw its share price hit a thirteen-year high. But as more and more Uber cars took to the streets over the next year and a half, the stock plummeted, ultimately losing about half of its value.

The average number of trips taken in a cab each day has fallen and average farebox revenue has fallen. Taxi garages are jammed with parked cabs because they can’t find enough drivers to hire. They’d all rather go work for Uber.

“It really is remarkable how these monopolies that couldn’t be broken for decades were broken so quickly,” says Barro, "but I think it’s because of Uber moving first and saying, ‘we’re going show people how this thing can be different, and then we’ll have the fight over whether we want that different thing or not.'"

Go to http://reason.com/reasontv for complete text and links.

7 minutes and 43 seconds.

Shot, edited, written, and narrated by Jim Epstein.

Music: "Lacera per calla" by Sergio (Creative Commons); "Bronco Romp" by Waylon Thornton (Creative Commons).

Go to http://Reason.com/ReasonTV for downloadable versions and subscribe to Reason TV's YouTube Channel to get automatic updates when new material goes live.

uber (venture funded company)
,
taxi (transit vehicle type)
,
new york city
,
medalion
,
gene freidman
,
andrew murstein
,
nicki minaj (celebrity)
,
reason (magazine)
,
libertarianism (political ideology)
,
free minds
    Thumbnail for Gov't Tried to Shut Down Rap in Straight Outta Compton, and They're Still Doing It.3:45
    Gov't Tried to Shut Down Rap in Straight Outta Compton, and They're Still Doing It.
    ReasonVids
    894 views
    Thumbnail for FBI Surveils Bikini Baristas, Officer Busted in Sex Sting! Don't Cops Have Better Things to Do!1:57
    FBI Surveils Bikini Baristas, Officer Busted in Sex Sting! Don't Cops Have Better Things to Do!
    ReasonVids
    1018 views
    Thumbnail for Keynes vs. Hayek Rap Video, Round 2: Q&A with Russ Roberts on top-down and bottom-up economics6:54
    Keynes vs. Hayek Rap Video, Round 2: Q&A with Russ Roberts on top-down and bottom-up economics
    ReasonVids
    906 views
    Thumbnail for 'Twas the Night Raid Before Christmas2:31
    'Twas the Night Raid Before Christmas
    ReasonVids
    938 views
    Thumbnail for Battle for the Supreme Court: Judicial Activism vs. Restraint21:58
    Battle for the Supreme Court: Judicial Activism vs. Restraint
    ReasonVids
    975 views
    Thumbnail for Bob Bowdon: What's Next for School Choice - and New Media5:07
    Bob Bowdon: What's Next for School Choice - and New Media
    ReasonVids
    1001 views
    Thumbnail for Parents, Pot, and Prohibition: Daisy Bram's Story7:41
    Parents, Pot, and Prohibition: Daisy Bram's Story
    ReasonVids
    947 views
    Thumbnail for Stossel: Sweden is Not a Socialist Success5:18
    Stossel: Sweden is Not a Socialist Success
    ReasonVids
    921 views
    Thumbnail for Brian Doherty Explains The Failure of Prop 19 and What it Means for the Future of Pot Legalization5:19
    Brian Doherty Explains The Failure of Prop 19 and What it Means for the Future of Pot Legalization
    ReasonVids
    815 views
    Thumbnail for Voat memes 6/11/2021 [slideshow]2:00
    Voat memes 6/11/2021 [slideshow]
    bestofvoatxyz
    1647 views
    Thumbnail for jews always exploit or engineer social fissures for their own interests. They have been using niggers as cheap farm equipments and refitted them as political and social weapons to destroy Western countries. (Warning NSFL: contains a few graphic images at the end)2:59
    jews always exploit or engineer social fissures for their own interests. They have been using niggers as cheap farm equipments and refitted them as political and social weapons to destroy Western countries. (Warning NSFL: contains a few graphic images at the end)
    AOUisgay
    457 views
    Thumbnail for A Very Libertarian Christmas3:32
    A Very Libertarian Christmas
    ReasonVids
    665 views
    Thumbnail for Anon is an asiring rapper1:17
    Anon is an asiring rapper
    bestofvoatxyz
    747 views
    Thumbnail for Kasich's Ohio Budget Disaster: Can you cut government by jacking spending 11%?1:34
    Kasich's Ohio Budget Disaster: Can you cut government by jacking spending 11%?
    ReasonVids
    837 views
    Thumbnail for Neuroeconomist Paul J. Zak  on Markets and the "Molecule of Love"9:46
    Neuroeconomist Paul J. Zak on Markets and the "Molecule of Love"
    ReasonVids
    820 views
    Thumbnail for Are Republicans Having a Latino Moment?10:53
    Are Republicans Having a Latino Moment?
    ReasonVids
    983 views
    Thumbnail for Elizabeth Warren's Plan To Cancel Student Debt Helps the Well-Off2:48
    Elizabeth Warren's Plan To Cancel Student Debt Helps the Well-Off
    ReasonVids
    945 views
    Thumbnail for Vote Frank Underwood: A House of Cards Political Ad0:52
    Vote Frank Underwood: A House of Cards Political Ad
    ReasonVids
    921 views
    Thumbnail for Why would any sensible Libertarian support abandoning Afghanistan to the Taliban?2:26
    Why would any sensible Libertarian support abandoning Afghanistan to the Taliban?
    ReasonVids
    827 views
    Thumbnail for Woke is an attack vector2:22
    Woke is an attack vector
    AOUisgay
    490 views
    Thumbnail for Let's check in on @graydragon's attempt to get sober 0:11
    Let's check in on @graydragon's attempt to get sober
    bestofupgoat
    465 views
    Thumbnail for Can Genetically Modified Mosquitoes Save The World From Zika?5:50
    Can Genetically Modified Mosquitoes Save The World From Zika?
    ReasonVids
    807 views
    Thumbnail for Kitty says "Uh-Oh" very clearly | barbj6720000:09
    Kitty says "Uh-Oh" very clearly | barbj672000
    invidious
    420 views
    Thumbnail for Vidaamuyarchi Teaser - English Version | Ajith Kumar | Trisha | Magizh Thirumeni | Subaskaran | Lyca1:49
    Vidaamuyarchi Teaser - English Version | Ajith Kumar | Trisha | Magizh Thirumeni | Subaskaran | Lyca
    invidious
    117 views
    Thumbnail for Kennedy Goes on Howard Stern: A Reading by Scott Adsit12:23
    Kennedy Goes on Howard Stern: A Reading by Scott Adsit
    ReasonVids
    939 views

points

Permalink
Reply
uber (venture funded company)
,
taxi (transit vehicle type)
,
new york city
,
medalion
,
gene freidman
,
andrew murstein
,
nicki minaj (celebrity)
,
reason (magazine)
,
libertarianism (political ideology)
,
free minds
TOS  •  Add Keywords  •  Donate  •   Analytics  •   DMCA  •   Puzzle