Is Uber Killing the Yellow Taxi in New York City?

As Uber's stranglehold over the taxi industry increases, some New York yellow cab dispatchers have found themselves in an unprecedented predicament: sitting on millions of dollars worth of medallion yellow cabs, but not enough drivers to drive them.

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[KamionKing]

Taxi charged me $20 from work to my house, while Uber charged me $8. No wonder they are going away.

[sidharthchand]

they said phone booths would never die

[LeonardGreenpaw]

Sounds like the problem is the medallion system, not uber

[soursop]

When i lived in Brooklyn during the 1980s and 90s i was never a fan of the yellow cabs. Especially as a black man. I would hail cabs only to be ignored. Good Riddance.

[lonelywuffy]

It's harsh, but every business is evolving. Keep up and change or go down the drain.

[salvation]

Taxis in New York will become Blockbuster Video if they don't adapt and change. It's not Ubers fault, it's the medallion system that is holding them back. In Toronto if you call an Uber you might get a marked taxi show up but working as an Uber, using the app to pay not going by the meter. You either adapt to change and go with the flow or you die off pretending that things were better the way it used to be. Netflix didn't kill Blockbuster Video, the slowness to evolve the business model did.

[keithmanfredi]

"Is Uber Killing the Yellow Taxi in New York City?"

Yes, and thank heavens.

[larrylentini]

Competition is a good thing, a million dollars for a medallion is thievery and that cost isn't just transferred to customers. My uncle was a cab driver for a while before Uber and he had to pay 100 dollars a day to use the cab (a car worth less than that would raise in a couple months). He didn't even break even every day at first. Any politician who interprets the problem to be Uber rather than the regulations on yellow cabs is pulling money right out of our pockets.

[order]

Adapt or die, that's natural selection. If your competitors provide a better service, adapt and do the same or declare bankruptcy. No sympathy from me.

[RabidPrairieDog]

Pro tip for yellow cabs: Make your prices more competitive. Seven mile drive in yellow cab in NY: $52. The same drive in an Uber: $31. Consumers vote with their wallets.

[TitoTimTravels]

Hard to feel any sympathy when a corrupt business goes down the drain. It is not just New York. Back in 1988 I was in Chicago and it was cheaper to rent a limo to the airport than take a cab. They have been price gouging for years, and giving shitty service. I won't shed a single tear for the US taxis. 😀🍹🇵🇭

[niyikan]

Yellow Cab is not dead, it's on life support.

[Mr.Legend_Speaks]

Why don't taxis go online and create an online app like uber?? More and more people carry cards only. They just have to adapt.

[Utonian]

Sell all the unused cabs to Hollywood, so they can be destroyed in the next superhero film.

[iplayoldschoolrunescape]

Seems like theres a simple answer to this problem ... Well atleast to me .... Just be like uber duh? .... Make an app where you can pay directly with your phone .... And the app will call the nearest oncoming cab? .... I mean there a lot of cabs on the streets just roaming .... But hey i get it cabs are oldschool but they need to adapt!

[AngelRmzDjFino]

Yellow cabs will be the next blockbuster if they don't adapt

[SOLBatmang]

Looks like the problem is the city not allowing yellowcabs to charge what they want and not allowing them to compete. They blame uber for skirting regulations, but at the way begining when the medallion system was created there were a few men in power who created those regulations in the first place.

[dunc_n_fr]

Nobody likes them anymore because there are no iconic Crown Vics left.

[fmcdomer]

WHY NOT CONVERT THESE UNUSED YELLOW CABS INTO UBER YELLOW

[filip]

Another example of why the free market beats government control.