I'm going to put on my grumpy think-like-an-economist cap and say that while Adrian Fenty's decision to move DC toward a meter system is excellent, his move to lower fares may not be. Lower fares means, after all, less supply -- it's not as if Fenty's going to acquire a vast army of slave cabdrivers to shuttle us around the city at low, low rates. Difficulty finding a free cab when you want one is a cost, too, so I'd want to see some kind of estimate of the impact before I immediately laud the move.
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Taxi Fares
17 Jan 2008 12:45 pm
Comments (16)
I've lived in the DC area for my entire life and I've taken a cab once. I understand some folks use them alot, but I've always found it easiest to get around (and into) the city using the metro. I love the Metro. It's clean, relatively fast, and nothing beats reading the whole 'A' section of the Post on the way to work in the morning. It's too bad I can't do it anymore. I guess I'll just look forward to the office we're moving to where I'll be able to ride my bike to work like a good DFH.
"it's not as if Fenty's going to acquire a vast army of slave cabdrivers to shuttle us around the city at low, low rates."
Of course. There would be some real moral and ethical problems with using a vast army of slave cabdrivers.
However, if he used zombie cabdrivers instead, he could make the whole thing work.
If he lowers fares, but adds a meter, I'm pretty sure you'll see people going from Georgetown to the Capitol by way of Arlington or something.
The cabdriver licensing system in DC will probably have a bigger impact on the availabity of cabdrivers than will the change in the marginal cost of a cabride.
"Fares" aren't being lowered. "Proposed fares" are being lowered. The proposed $4 flag-drop was very high - the currently proposed $3 is still higher than NYC, where it's $2.50.
And there's no need any longer for a rush hour surcharge, which was imposed because of slower trips due to traffic, because the meter imposes additional charges when the cab is not moving.
Economists love to study taxis because they're easy to observe and they present situations that are simple analogies to more complex transactions. They're like the fruit flies of the econ world. If you really want to think like an economist you might check out the literature. That's what economists do, right?
But if you want to think like an adolescent right-wing tool who took Econ 101 and pretends to think like an economist - that's not so good.
The rates appear to still be comparable to other major cities, and certainly not lower. Is it hard to get a cab in other cities? I genuinely don't know, as I've only caught cabs in DC and NYC before, not having problems finding one in either place.
It would seem as though the fact that comparable rate and meter systems in other cities don't lead to cab supply problems would lead one to suspect that the new rates wouldn't lead to problems here. Especially absent any evidence to the contrary.
And as Bob LaBlog said above, the fees for getting cab licences, more than the fair rates, are what really affects the amount of cab operators in a cities. Or so I've read.
I have a feeling that Eritrean refugees will not stop coming to America because Fenty lowered the fare.
And there's always the possible of fuel surcharges
And DC cabs are generally in pretty crappy physical condition anyway--many apparently run by small, seat-of-the-pants operations. Decreasing fares will only lead to a more disheveled group of cabs. Sad for those of us who live here and, in my mind, sad also for the nation that people visiting its capital have to ride in about the crappiest (on average) cabs I've seen in any big US city.
And DC cabs are generally in pretty crappy physical condition anyway--many apparently run by small, seat-of-the-pants operations. Decreasing fares will only lead to a more disheveled group of cabs. Sad for those of us who live here and, in my mind, sad also for the nation that people visiting its capital have to ride in about the crappiest (on average) cabs I've seen in any big US city.
Supposing it's true that the proposed fares are low (which is unclear) wouldn't it mean that cabdrivers will have to work longer hours to make the same amount of money they did before, thereby actually increasing the supply? After all, cabdriving isn't a fixed 40-hour week kind of job.
"Supposing it's true that the proposed fares are low (which is unclear) wouldn't it mean that cabdrivers will have to work longer hours to make the same amount of money they did before, thereby actually increasing the supply? After all, cabdriving isn't a fixed 40-hour week kind of job."
The idea is that they would change jobs so there would be less supply.
Cab's are limited by the number of medalions (permits) issued, not by the supply of willing drivers.
In NYC, they allow medalions to be resold, and the going rate is ~$150K, which gives you some idea of how profitable the industry is.
So it's unlikely that DC will run out of cabs.
PS: The poor condition of the city's cabs is of a piece with the poor condition of all of its infrastructure. The city is simply very poorly governed.
Gee, how about letting anyone with a vehicle which passes a safety check, and who can pass a test demonstrating knowledge of the street geography, put a meter in their car, and charge whatever the hell they want, the price to be displayed on top of the car?
Great idea, Will. Now I'll just stand at the curb, note the fare of each cab that passes, and after a half hour of freezing my ass off I'll know which cab I should have taken.
Will, hat's pretty much what DC does now. Except you don't have to pass a safety inspection or know your way around. And you have to pay for a medallion (but they're cheap compared to NYC). And you don't have to put your rates on the roof of the cab. But still, you can pretty much charge whatever you want.
Meters would definitely change the usage patterns of taxis in DC in a big way, as customers who've been used to somewhat cheaper cabs through "gaming" the system (the notorious "Capitol to K St lunch spot in traffic," one-zone fare), while usage by others is likely to increase (even without the lower proposed fares). Thrown in the reduction in fares to realistic levels, and I'm guessing there would be increased use of cabs (for better or worse). As others have pointed out, the supply of taxis is kept artificially low, so lower prices won't necessarily or immediately translate into lower supply.
Comments closed January 31, 2008.
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Heads in the Sand
Half of your complain is what? The fact that you have more money than other Dc'ers no longer means you automatically get caps and they no longer have to walk?
My heart bleeds for you.
Posted by soullite | January 17, 2008 1:11 PM