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A Backhanded Defense of Las Vegas' Taxi Regulation

Posted by timothy on from the professional-clowns-rather-than-amateur-clowns dept.

At Medium.com, Blake Ross takes a tongue-in-cheek look at the consumer protections that exist courtesy of the the Nevada Taxicab Authority, which (putting it mildly) seem to be rather more friendly to the existing taxi businesses in Las Vegas than they are to any disgruntled riders. By contrast with Uber (just booted from Las Vegas), Ross points out that the Taxicab Authority relies on antiquated complaint forms, random police checks, overlooked airport signs, and expensive tracking devices. Nonethess, says Ross, "I stand with Nevada and say—leave this to the pros."

3 of 93 comments (clear)

  1. I can see Vegas wanting to protect their revenue by Virtucon · · Score: 4, Informative

    Sorry I travel 2 sometimes 3 times a month to Vegas and I have to say outside of NYC it's the biggest taxi racket out there. Because of the terminal locations, it's a guaranteed $10 sometimes $15 bucks before you even get to the Strip because of the circuitous routing and roads. One time I had a driver "miss" the airport exit and then had to argue with him over the extra $13 bucks on the meter because of his mistake. So now I rent cars when I go there and again, Vegas leads this category in stupidity. Hike to the Rental Car Shuttle Bus, ride for 10 minutes, more lines, more hassle and oh yeah nice "Franchise" fees on top of "Airport Taxes" to pile onto the car. Still, it's better than a taxi there.

    --
    Harrison's Postulate - "For every action there is an equal and opposite criticism"
  2. Re:We've already seen the alternative to regulatio by neilo_1701D · · Score: 3, Informative

    I've not heard of a single case of an Uber or Lyft ride going terribly wrong.

    I guess it depends on your definition of "terribly wrong".

    Uber Suspends Driver Accused of Sexual Assault (http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/Police-Make-Arrest-After-Woman-Accuses-Uber-Driver-of-Assault-268755481.html)

    Uber driver accused of hammer attack on S.F. rider (http://www.sfgate.com/crime/article/Uber-driver-accused-of-hammer-attack-on-San-5783495.php)

    Uber Driver Arrested For Allegedly Kidnapping California Woman (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/04/uber-driver-kidnapping-los-angeles_n_5442676.html)

    Florida Uber driver says he grabbed customer’s breast because she wasn’t wearing a bra (http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/florida-uber-driver-grabs-female-passenger-breast-cops-article-1.1953167)

    And then there's The Ten Worst Uber Horror Stories (http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/11/19/the-ten-worst-uber-horror-stories.html)

  3. Re:We've already seen the alternative to regulatio by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    If the regulation sucks, reform the regulations. Don't throw a huge hissy fit and shit the bed out of spite.

    Like dumping tea in the harbor.

    You say "reform the regulations" as if the "two" party system in the USA actually represents our interests at all.

    So no, we won't just politely file our objections in the round bin, and we won't stop with our "hissy fit" any time soon.