I thought Uber X was a great thing when I first heard of it and it seemed a bit like eBay: a means for ordinary car owners to make extra cash in down time and a less intimidating, more casual hired-car experience for younger riders who probably wouldn't think of using formal cabs yet. I'm a firm believer in the importance of the velocity of funds and I saw Uber, Lyft etc. as a means to increase that velocity with a host of new fare-paying riders. But then Uber started its price war behavior to try to run the competitors out of business, at the expense of its own drivers who received grossly inadequate compensation for their time and wear and tear on their vehicles. I felt like I was cheating these folks if I used their services.
My cab experience is based upon Los Angeles. I've used cabs here fairly extensively for at least 15 years. The drivers can be a mixed bag in terms of personality but they are generally a good deal more competent than the average Los Angeleno behind the wheel. Fares can be high but that's a function of the sheer sprawl of LA. If you use them a lot, you get into their system and the resulting service can reward customers with a positive record. I figure the cabbies are already struggling to live in this expensive city; expecting them to provide their own cars and collect lower fares is shortsighted. The mentality behind this invites a deflationary spiral in the entire economy.
My cab experience is based upon Los Angeles. I've used cabs here fairly extensively for at least 15 years. The drivers can be a mixed bag in terms of personality but they are generally a good deal more competent than the average Los Angeleno behind the wheel. Fares can be high but that's a function of the sheer sprawl of LA. If you use them a lot, you get into their system and the resulting service can reward customers with a positive record. I figure the cabbies are already struggling to live in this expensive city; expecting them to provide their own cars and collect lower fares is shortsighted. The mentality behind this invites a deflationary spiral in the entire economy.
11
Uber has refused to obey a single law anywhere in the United States, so why would they comply with any other country or its cities?
France banned Uber and raided its Paris Uber office like other European cities.
Interpol must intervene along with the FBI indict them all and arrest them for operating a concerted criminal conspiracy and shut down the app.
There is no other solution. Seoul did it and Kalanick is indicted.
Enforcement agencies are way too soft.
STOP the Corruption.
France banned Uber and raided its Paris Uber office like other European cities.
Interpol must intervene along with the FBI indict them all and arrest them for operating a concerted criminal conspiracy and shut down the app.
There is no other solution. Seoul did it and Kalanick is indicted.
Enforcement agencies are way too soft.
STOP the Corruption.
8
I wonder if any Journalist writing about tnc companies like Uber and Lyft will EVER, take the time to do what Uber and Lyft customers are unable to do. READ THE ACTUAL TOS agreements and driver contracting that these companies use. It doesn't even take being a lawyer to understand. Uber: www.uber.com/legal Lyft www.lyft.com/terms Each of these agreements clearly outline that the advertised insurance is INVALIDATED once you hit 'agree'. Leaving it to each of the drivers, who aren't even required to have proper insurance to drive for these services. Why would they and why would Uber or Lyft require it when they can lie about these 'surplus line' policies that they promote as actual insurance? the proper insurance is expensive because YOU ARE TRANSPORTING HUMAN BEINGS on public traffic ways. This is a scam. it doesn't matter how fast your ride gets to you when all of the incidental costs become the burden of the public when a wreck happens. For a tech company, they cant even put black box video systems in their vehicles the same as many taxi companies do today in order to protect insurance stability and public/customer safety. This is A PRIME EXAMPLE OF THE IDIOCRACY AT WORK ON A GLOBAL LEVEL.
10
It's interesting that the French perspective primarily considers the interests of the drivers who depend on their job to make a living. If UBER undermines a pre-established industry by failing to respect the rules that it has established, it is seen as unfair to the workers.
A lot of commenters primarily consider the position of the consumer. They're bemoaning the situation of the tourist trying to get a cab at night etc. and discussing the wisdom of the market from the perspective of the consumer, who gets what he or she wants because of innovation and market competition.
Which matters more? The French concern for fair competition and respecting pre-established rules in the interest of workers, or "free market" competition in the interest of consumers and wealthy entrepreneurs?
It seems like part of what makes UBER work is that it can convince the majority of consumers that its new technology is in their interest, and then use the power of that majority to push against the interests of those who actually manage and operate the industry, who are subsequently left without the rights that they've relied on.
A lot of commenters primarily consider the position of the consumer. They're bemoaning the situation of the tourist trying to get a cab at night etc. and discussing the wisdom of the market from the perspective of the consumer, who gets what he or she wants because of innovation and market competition.
Which matters more? The French concern for fair competition and respecting pre-established rules in the interest of workers, or "free market" competition in the interest of consumers and wealthy entrepreneurs?
It seems like part of what makes UBER work is that it can convince the majority of consumers that its new technology is in their interest, and then use the power of that majority to push against the interests of those who actually manage and operate the industry, who are subsequently left without the rights that they've relied on.
18
Yes, precisely. Uber is unconcerned about turning an entire industry into one which can only yield part time money. It's exactly what you're saying, they deflect to only what the consumer sees. The consumer has no clue that the once career driver they'd had last year can no longer make enough to support himself because Uber has flooded the market with 20,000 additional cars.
13
People and corporations benefitting from the status quo will fight to keep it, even if they go down in the process. Ask the typewriter manufacturers, the record companies, the film making industry, and the wall phone and phone line companies. It's survival of the fittest in the time of the electronic revolution. We are in the middle of it, not the end of it. Hang on tight. It's going to be quite a ride (no pun intended)!
5
Uber don't seem to have any moral code. Workers have no employment rights, protections, health insurance and most want to work full time but can't! If Uber decided to temporarily forgo profit to become more socially responsible, maybe more socially responsible government in Europe would become more open to them!
9
It's gets a bit old hearing how great life is in France / Western Europe with good social benefits, etc..and that the US is so backward. Of course life is great in Europe. The US has been supporting them for a century - WWI, WWII, Marshall Plan and the cold war. Even today Europe spends next to nothing on defense because the US spends so much. Not to mention the tens of thousands of US service men and women who sacrificed their lives saving Europe. Socialism is wonderful when you're always on the receiving end courtesy of the US taxpayer.
4
Having lived and worked in the southern part of France for more than 30 years, I found some of you comments about the French mentality interesting and amusing.
In the US, if a young couple takes second part time jobs to save up for a down payment for a home, they are usually thought of positively as hard working, wanting to get ahead, building a better life for themselves, etc.
In the same scenario in France where the employment relationship is tightly controlled by government, if the second jobs were possible, which is not likely, the attitude would be extremely negative, as this young couple would be seen as engaging in highly anti-social behavior, stealing work from others, etc.
The French attitude exists in many other European countries as well, but not always as extreme as in France. Different forms of this same attitude exist in most of the world as well, but not always for the same reasons; however, the result as concerns Uber is largely the same.
Uber is obviously providing a much needed service, particularly in areas where taxis are scarce or unreliable; otherwise, it could not exist. But Uber will have to cope with this resistance to change until its ideas take hold.
In the US, if a young couple takes second part time jobs to save up for a down payment for a home, they are usually thought of positively as hard working, wanting to get ahead, building a better life for themselves, etc.
In the same scenario in France where the employment relationship is tightly controlled by government, if the second jobs were possible, which is not likely, the attitude would be extremely negative, as this young couple would be seen as engaging in highly anti-social behavior, stealing work from others, etc.
The French attitude exists in many other European countries as well, but not always as extreme as in France. Different forms of this same attitude exist in most of the world as well, but not always for the same reasons; however, the result as concerns Uber is largely the same.
Uber is obviously providing a much needed service, particularly in areas where taxis are scarce or unreliable; otherwise, it could not exist. But Uber will have to cope with this resistance to change until its ideas take hold.
4
I wish you (and the article) had fleshed out the opposing European point of view about work rather than use an "etc" as if we all knew. There is a real need to contrast the North American with the Continental view on so many issues. Social democracy vs Neoliberalism. Let the assumptions be articulated before we rush to judgment. We get a hint in the observation that positions are not full time, there are no benefits. . . I, for one, see major problems with this kind of job market becoming the norm. It sounds so nice when you talk about the need for more taxis and how people ought to be able to make discretionary income if they so desire. But I fear there's another, far uglier, truth. We see it in our minimum wage discussion.
12
The fact of the matter is that there are NOT ENOUGH TAXIS in Paris. Good luck when it rains or it is after midnight. Alternate taxi solutions are badly needed!!! Of course, passenger safety is important. However, this monopoly industry is not expanding its supply to meet the demand of the public and they are holding the public hostage. This would also provide employment and income for people wanting to work.
8
What is completely silent in this article is the fact that most drivers for Uber aren't licensed, aren't submitted to vehicle inspections and don't have commercial insurance. It also doesn't appear that they are charging VAT (in France it's 19.6%) as most businesses would be charging. If I opened a restaurant without a license, I would be shut down. If I went around pretending to be a lawyer, I'd probably find myself in jail. While the barriers to entry to become a cab driver are high, the solution isn't to operate illegally in the meantime. If Uber is operating illegally right now, the smart thing to do would be to subpoena their payment information and fine them per instance they operate illegally in the country. If not, then the government is only policing the small time dealer, rather than the drug lord.
16
Uber is also illegal in Canada.
http://www.ottawasun.com/2015/02/16/more-uber-drivers-slapped-with-charges
http://www.ottawasun.com/2015/02/16/more-uber-drivers-slapped-with-charges
3
As it should be everywhere until it behaves like a responsible business for its workers, its customers and the society in which it operates. The owners are simply saying we should be able to do this, because WE CAN. They also traffic in the data they collect from their users.
6
I love Uber.
The USA will always come out ahead as long as it provides the business environment where disruptive idea like Uber can emerge and thrive. My last Uber ride driver was out of work sound engineer for whom Ubet was literally a life saver to make ends meet. I detest taking cabs where cars are dirty and drivers are glum and unfriendly and trying to take the longer route if I am not vigilant enough.
The USA will always come out ahead as long as it provides the business environment where disruptive idea like Uber can emerge and thrive. My last Uber ride driver was out of work sound engineer for whom Ubet was literally a life saver to make ends meet. I detest taking cabs where cars are dirty and drivers are glum and unfriendly and trying to take the longer route if I am not vigilant enough.
4
France is a country that still has rule-of-law as a basis of its government's legitimacy. I can understand why this is surprising to Uber as its corporate mentality is that companies who can't work within the law simply lobby the law out of existence, like in their home country.
15
Given the ethnic profile of the drivers mentioned in the article, it sounds like that in the anti-Uber law, the Boers have the perfect pretense for the profiling of potential terrorists. It sounds like a giant info gathering scheme.
1
The problems Uber faces in Paris are very similar to those it faces in Mexico City (and probably in many other cities); namely, the traditional taxi drivers' cartel. But what happened to Western governments? Aren't they for innovation and free trade, and against monopolies? This is the time to put their money where their mouths are. Uber came up with a great idea, which customers love because it fulfills an important need and makes our lives easier and safer, and traditional taxis hate because it will probably put them out of business unless, of course, they start offering the same kind of efficient service or become affiliated with Uber. Uber is to traditional taxis what e-mail was to the fax: after it, hardly anyone uses the machine. The demand is huge, worldwide, governments will not be able to curb it; it will be like trying to wall the sea. Plus, Uber is good for the economy: it pays taxes, it creates (freelance) jobs. The only downside to it is that dinosaurs will have to adapt or die.
4
So well put. I totally agree with your statements. Uber is a disrupter to the status quo who will fight it. It will be interesting to see how it plays out in other cultures and countries. Free enterprise such as Uber and Ainnb is viewed suspiciously by the status quo who will slander and malign it and try to squash it. I hope the needs of the public will win out.
2
"disruption" is a neutrai phenomenon; it can be very very good, or just the opposite. it's facile and unthinking to say that any disruption is positive.
4
I have used Uber Black in DC 120 times in the last 18 months. I use it for business and personal use. The cars are almost always clean and I have never waited more than 6 minutes for a car even in the worst weather. One evening we traveled to an industrial part of town where no taxis are available for hailing, it was rainy evening and we called the local cab companies and all the lines were busy. When one cab co answered they said they wouldn't send a driver to the part of town. So, I used Uber and 6 minutes later we were on our way home. And we get to rate the drivers to boot! I love it!
4
Thank you for this piece. You should next also investigate the powerful taxi lobby, especially Taxis G7 and its owners. Many taxi drivers are just employees, not all of them own the medallion. Some of these turn to Uber and other similar services to make a comparably better living.
3
Ha ha ha. Always a smiling and nearly despising tone towards France. Are the employment, economic situation so thriving in the all-deregulated countries like the US, the UK, etc? In these countries the poverty is frightening. And they continue without shame to build financial bubbles (after the real estate subprimes, here are the car market subprimes).
And still they continue to teach lessons to countries that try to control, in a Keynesian manner, the economy...
And still they continue to teach lessons to countries that try to control, in a Keynesian manner, the economy...
8
As a matter of fact, I am a francophile who has lived for 12 years in France and love it. That does not take away from some of the absurdities of anachronisms and the lack of a service economy to meet the needs of the public.
4
The protests against Uber and the war waged by the government is nothing but pure hypocrisy. Uber drivers pay taxes, have insurance and, stop traffic, they are actually nice. Something that is a rare as a unicorn in France... finding a taxi that is available, willing to take you where you want to go and actually polite. And who isn't paying taxes? Try paying by credit card at the taxi line in any of the parisian airports. You are likely to see 13-14 taxis refuse to take you if you are paying by credit card so they don't have to report their income. Talk about who's not playing by the rules.
5
A tiny fraction of Uber drivers have proper insurance, only where they've been forced to carry it, like NYC. The rest use useless personal insurance which is cancelled if their insurers find out they're driving commercially. Uber's umbrella policy is a joke. As of today, Uber is up in Albany trying to get rid of the Commercial insurance requirement in NY. It's all about competing unfairly, coercing legislatures to rewrite laws just for them, undercutting real taxis. Driving a yellow cab was never glamorous, but it's been a reliable way to make decent money. Uber is turning it into a job which is no longer a reliable full time job for anyone. Only part timers who supplement their income by another means.
11
Call me a country rube but here's my NYC car service story.
I had to get a load of props from my friend's Brooklyn Sunset Park studio to Lincoln Center. He had me call his usual car service which arrived shortly. The driver and I chatted pleasantly for the trip though time was tight. At Lincoln Center we pulled up to the curb and I was ready and paid in cash and tipped him very well. Just as I finished unloading he walked around the car and showed me the cash I'd given him. In my haste I'd accidentally given him $65 instead of $85. I was mortified! I apologized and quickly pulled out another $20 bill and gave it to him. He walked around front, got in, and drove away.
Later I counted my money. I had indeed originally paid him $85. He'd just hidden one of my $20's and ripped me off for another $20.
C'est la vie?
The thing about Uber is an Uber driver CAN'T rip off an Uber passenger. There's no cash involved. Your credit card is automatically charged when you reach your destination.
AND the thing about Uber is an Uber passenger CAN'T rip off an Uber driver! Same reason.
I had to get a load of props from my friend's Brooklyn Sunset Park studio to Lincoln Center. He had me call his usual car service which arrived shortly. The driver and I chatted pleasantly for the trip though time was tight. At Lincoln Center we pulled up to the curb and I was ready and paid in cash and tipped him very well. Just as I finished unloading he walked around the car and showed me the cash I'd given him. In my haste I'd accidentally given him $65 instead of $85. I was mortified! I apologized and quickly pulled out another $20 bill and gave it to him. He walked around front, got in, and drove away.
Later I counted my money. I had indeed originally paid him $85. He'd just hidden one of my $20's and ripped me off for another $20.
C'est la vie?
The thing about Uber is an Uber driver CAN'T rip off an Uber passenger. There's no cash involved. Your credit card is automatically charged when you reach your destination.
AND the thing about Uber is an Uber passenger CAN'T rip off an Uber driver! Same reason.
12
Also add to that that Uber drivers and passengers get rated by each other.
1
Guess you never heard of 'surge' pricing. If you think it's not manipulated you're wrong.
5
Jim, yes I have heard of "surge" pricing. It's one of the first things you learn. You call it a "manipulation" but it's another excellent excellent feature of Uber! Why don't you think so?
1
For fun I just opened my Uber app to see how much it would cost right now to take Uber from Charles de Gaulle airport to Notre Dame Cathedral. 35€! Five minute wait time!
For fun I just googled "how much does it cost to take a taxi from CDG to Central Paris?" Lordy. The stories.
For fun I just googled "how much does it cost to take a taxi from CDG to Central Paris?" Lordy. The stories.
9
Could this animosity between Uber and cabbies in Paris be a bit pointless? Isn't Paris ramping up to get all vehicular traffic out of central Paris in a few years?
3
Why do you think "a few years" is immaterial? What if you had to get an aging parent to a pharmacy to get a prescription filled sooner than in "a few years"?
2
The pervasive tone of Paris-bashing in many comments is unfortunate, gratuitous, nasty, and it really seems sadly more revealing about the American mind-set that anything about Paris.
Why do Americans so love to attack foreign nations and cultures, especially of a long-time ally and friend like France, whose culture and cities are so wonderful?
Why do Americans so love to attack foreign nations and cultures, especially of a long-time ally and friend like France, whose culture and cities are so wonderful?
17
Americans don't actually, at least the several thousands I personally know. Americans are characteristically quite friendly and spontaneous. The "bashing" going on here, if that's what it's to be called, is uniformly people relating their direct experiences with Parisian taxis.
But as long as you bring it up, I wonder why it's de rigueur the French, actually the French Left, bash and bash and bash America? It's dispiriting to experience, embarrassing and ultimately saddening. The only place in France where they don't as a general rule is Normandie where they still remember.
But as long as you bring it up, I wonder why it's de rigueur the French, actually the French Left, bash and bash and bash America? It's dispiriting to experience, embarrassing and ultimately saddening. The only place in France where they don't as a general rule is Normandie where they still remember.
2
@NYer: "The pervasive tone of Paris-bashing in many comments ..."
Please quote a specific comment, so we have something definite to analyze. Vague generalizations are useless.
Please quote a specific comment, so we have something definite to analyze. Vague generalizations are useless.
It's gets a bit old hearing how great life is in France / Western Europe with good social benefits, etc..and that the US is so backward. Of course life is great in Europe. The US has been supporting them for a century - WWI, WWII, Marshall Plan and the cold war. Even today Europe spends next to nothing on defense because the US spends so much. Not to mention the tens of thousands of US service men and women who sacrificed their lives saving Europe. Socialism is wonderful when you're always on the receiving end courtesy of the US taxpayer.
3
I'm surprised that some people think that Taxi cabs, which are using public thoroughfares as their place of business, should not be heavily regulated.
Virtually ever enterprise today, requires licensing of businesses, and in many cases, individuals as well - cabs should not be an exception. Uber's behavior in France - forming an enterprise to "beat" the law, is clearly racketeering, and should be treated as such.
The world shouldn't have one standard for Soccer Officials, and another for the Taxi industry magnates. Uber executives should be busted - not the individual drivers. The current approach in Paris, as described in this article, is the equivalent of busting prostitutes, and leaving the pimps alone.
Virtually ever enterprise today, requires licensing of businesses, and in many cases, individuals as well - cabs should not be an exception. Uber's behavior in France - forming an enterprise to "beat" the law, is clearly racketeering, and should be treated as such.
The world shouldn't have one standard for Soccer Officials, and another for the Taxi industry magnates. Uber executives should be busted - not the individual drivers. The current approach in Paris, as described in this article, is the equivalent of busting prostitutes, and leaving the pimps alone.
16
"I'm surprised that some people think that Taxi cabs, which are using public thoroughfares as their place of business, should not be heavily regulated."
Please, enjoy and relish and embrace the challenge of being surprised! Don't condemn it for being a surprise.
Please, enjoy and relish and embrace the challenge of being surprised! Don't condemn it for being a surprise.
"Virtually ever enterprise today, requires licensing of businesses, and in many cases, individuals as well "
That is to make sure that the parasitic, self-serving bureaucrats that infest all levels of government can say that they are doing "something' to justify their useless existence.
That is to make sure that the parasitic, self-serving bureaucrats that infest all levels of government can say that they are doing "something' to justify their useless existence.
2
The taxi industry is the Transportation System that the authorities could not develop. Being in New York city in particular one of the cheapest of the world, is giving most of the approximately 50,000 yellow cab registered drivers, a meager income, for their grueling physical work. UBER is changing that.
UBER is making the pleasure of felling fashionable and in command of another human being, commonplace. The consequences are several, though.
And they have not been considered. Of course UBER investors don't care.
Among them, no social net for those drivers, forced to be independent, aggressive drivers, what eventually will return to our society traffic degradation, customers and workers moral degradation, etc.
UBER to me, personify Capitalism to the extreme. It needs much more regulation. Before hurts us more, irreparably.
It goes on synch with Stratification, Inequality, Disparity and Power.
UBER is making the pleasure of felling fashionable and in command of another human being, commonplace. The consequences are several, though.
And they have not been considered. Of course UBER investors don't care.
Among them, no social net for those drivers, forced to be independent, aggressive drivers, what eventually will return to our society traffic degradation, customers and workers moral degradation, etc.
UBER to me, personify Capitalism to the extreme. It needs much more regulation. Before hurts us more, irreparably.
It goes on synch with Stratification, Inequality, Disparity and Power.
6
Growing up in a Communist country, this story sounds very familiar to me. The totalitarian state was charging the citizens with "unfair competition" and "disloyal competition" every time they offered a product or a service that was way superior to what the state sponsored versions were. Meanwhile the consumers could not find fresh vegetables or anything healthy to eat. The state would hire a mafia-like gangs to destroy any "illegal" businesses who dared to supply them. Repeat "offenders" were jailed.
Since then I've lived in NYC , DC and Japan. NYC: good luck getting to the Bronx with the government mafia sponsored cab driver or not paying a road-robbery worth of a tip for often horrific service. DC: recently got mugged by a state-sponsored cab driver who would not let me out of a car after refusing to use my cards for payment. Japan: highly regulated taxicab industry actually works; drivers are extremely efficient, very kind and well behaved, while charging no tip. I guess in some places the government controlled industry can still work. Otherwise take Uber.
Reading the top comments made me depressed. France has 25% youth unemployment and American leftist readers want to keep it there.
Since then I've lived in NYC , DC and Japan. NYC: good luck getting to the Bronx with the government mafia sponsored cab driver or not paying a road-robbery worth of a tip for often horrific service. DC: recently got mugged by a state-sponsored cab driver who would not let me out of a car after refusing to use my cards for payment. Japan: highly regulated taxicab industry actually works; drivers are extremely efficient, very kind and well behaved, while charging no tip. I guess in some places the government controlled industry can still work. Otherwise take Uber.
Reading the top comments made me depressed. France has 25% youth unemployment and American leftist readers want to keep it there.
9
Only right now as I type on a visit to Seattle have I been in an Uber city. I decided to give Uber a try and downloaded the app. I've used it three times. Astounding. A thing of beauty. I'm never going back.
I think it has to be seen to be appreciated. From wherever you are – Honolulu, hiking the Pacific Crest trail, Seoul – pretend you have an aging parent in Cincinnati or Montreal or Roanoke-Blacksburg who needs to get from their home to a nearby CVS Pharmacy. Without finally touching "request" behold how it works on the screen of your smartphone you're holding in the palm of your hand. Amazing.
I could go on but just one striking observation – the evident care and pride each Uber driver I've had has in their work and business is actually moving. Sorry, never experienced anything close to that in a union-owned taxi.
I think it has to be seen to be appreciated. From wherever you are – Honolulu, hiking the Pacific Crest trail, Seoul – pretend you have an aging parent in Cincinnati or Montreal or Roanoke-Blacksburg who needs to get from their home to a nearby CVS Pharmacy. Without finally touching "request" behold how it works on the screen of your smartphone you're holding in the palm of your hand. Amazing.
I could go on but just one striking observation – the evident care and pride each Uber driver I've had has in their work and business is actually moving. Sorry, never experienced anything close to that in a union-owned taxi.
7
To be clear, I mean to say you, yourself, are ordering an Uber car FOR an aging parent from halfway around the world.
Uber is just another example of how today's young entrepreneurs make money by ignoring laws, regulations and other norms of a civilized society. They try to make their ideas sound respectable by calling them "disruptive," when they are actually illegal.
The Times has documented how Uber drivers scrounge for a living by working long hours. Their personal auto insurance may not even cover the livery services they are providing. Uber claims it is creating jobs, but it is being done at the expense of drivers from competitors who are actually required to observe the law. Citizens are forced to pay extra as municipalities must assign additional time and resources to corral these rogue services. Just as with our bankers, no individuals seem to be cited for infractions or go to jail over these incursions.
Current urban transportation systems may not be perfect. But I can remember a time when we were told to change the system from within if we didn't like the way things were being done. Now, we simply flout the laws.
The Times has documented how Uber drivers scrounge for a living by working long hours. Their personal auto insurance may not even cover the livery services they are providing. Uber claims it is creating jobs, but it is being done at the expense of drivers from competitors who are actually required to observe the law. Citizens are forced to pay extra as municipalities must assign additional time and resources to corral these rogue services. Just as with our bankers, no individuals seem to be cited for infractions or go to jail over these incursions.
Current urban transportation systems may not be perfect. But I can remember a time when we were told to change the system from within if we didn't like the way things were being done. Now, we simply flout the laws.
12
I would think that if you didn't want to get busted by the Boers in Paris you should just sit up front with the driver...
11
Uber fights tooth and nail against fingerprint ID requirements. With modern counterfeiting technology cranking out fake IDs, that means you don't know who your drivers are or what is their background and neither does Uber.
Intoxicated passengers have been assaulted by drivers and Uber never explains what went wrong with their "better than the government" background checks. The authorities should start confiscating the vehicles of unauthorized drivers and use the proceeds to fund more enforcement.
At the same time, there should be a legal framework for ride sharing services, but with ID and insurance requirements equal to medallion cabs.
Intoxicated passengers have been assaulted by drivers and Uber never explains what went wrong with their "better than the government" background checks. The authorities should start confiscating the vehicles of unauthorized drivers and use the proceeds to fund more enforcement.
At the same time, there should be a legal framework for ride sharing services, but with ID and insurance requirements equal to medallion cabs.
6
Hmm... this is a remarkably inefficient way to crack down. Why don't they confiscate Uber's records, then go to drivers' houses and issue summonses en masse? Perhaps this is meant more to keep the police employed than to keep Uber drivers unemployed.
2
@shaunc: "Why don't they confiscate Uber's records, then go to drivers' houses and issue summonses en masse?"
According to the article: "In March, French police conducted a morning raid as part of its investigation into Uber’s operations. ..."
The article doesn't say whether that raid led to a court case, nor does it give a reason for this restriction: "The Boers are prohibited from consulting the map within Uber’s app to locate cars."
According to the article: "In March, French police conducted a morning raid as part of its investigation into Uber’s operations. ..."
The article doesn't say whether that raid led to a court case, nor does it give a reason for this restriction: "The Boers are prohibited from consulting the map within Uber’s app to locate cars."
Why can't consumers decide for themselves if they want to take a chance that an Uber driver isn't as "trained" or "professional" or even insured as a regulated Taxi? If you want 100% security, take the taxi - they aren't going out of business even if Uber is completely unregulated. There is a place for both in the market. As an Uber user for 2 years including trying it out as a driver for a few months just to see what that was like, I'm biased toward the service, it is amazing.
Open an app, press a button and private car shows up to take you anywhere for a competitive price - OMG, shut that down, ce un outrage!
Adults can make intelligent decisions, let the market breathe a little bit, France, you might be shocked of the net benefits.
Open an app, press a button and private car shows up to take you anywhere for a competitive price - OMG, shut that down, ce un outrage!
Adults can make intelligent decisions, let the market breathe a little bit, France, you might be shocked of the net benefits.
3
As someone who lived for many years in Europe, this makes me glad to be back in the U.S. It can be such a frustrating place. They are so small minded and resistant to progress and innovation. They will eventually give in, enjoy it all the while cursing the Americans under their breath.
2
A reader writes here that "capitalism is the survival of the fittest," as if that's a good thing. Capitalism is a system that profits from the hard work of individuals. Many capitalist enterprises are good partners, but too many exist to line the pockets of the 1%, who, simply-put, don't like to share.
Uber does not care about its drivers as people. The company profits from not having to have "real" employees, not paying them decent wages, not offering health care, not providing pension benefits. It's a phony company. The founders get rich and the drivers don't have government safety protections, which licensed taxi drivers would have.
The true risk is to passengers. One of the worst things a person can do, especially a woman alone at night, is to get into an unlicensed "cab." One day in the saga of Uber, someone will get into an Uber car, and the back doors will automatically lock and exit will be impossible. The car will be driven to a risky location where friends of the driver will be waiting. Hopefully, the only thing a passenger will lose is his or her money.
Uber does not care about its drivers as people. The company profits from not having to have "real" employees, not paying them decent wages, not offering health care, not providing pension benefits. It's a phony company. The founders get rich and the drivers don't have government safety protections, which licensed taxi drivers would have.
The true risk is to passengers. One of the worst things a person can do, especially a woman alone at night, is to get into an unlicensed "cab." One day in the saga of Uber, someone will get into an Uber car, and the back doors will automatically lock and exit will be impossible. The car will be driven to a risky location where friends of the driver will be waiting. Hopefully, the only thing a passenger will lose is his or her money.
5
That is absolutely hilarious! That scenario is FAR more likely with a traditional taxi cab. Unlike taxis, UBER drivers are completely tracked by the app. Any Uber driver committing a crime like that would be immediately caught and arrested. The same can not be said nearly so easy of a cab driver. It is unfortunate that hard working cab drivers are having their business impacted but the system that they so dearly bought into is extremely corrupt. In the end it will be impossible to deny the public the obviously superior services that the TNC companies are offering. The smart cabs are now adopting some of these same practices. I think the amounts being charged by the TNC's to the drivers should be regulated, however. The continuing squeeze on drivers by the TNC's is the biggest threat to public safety in my opinion.
1
should we in india begin to doubt all american imports such as uber? how does the u.s. allow such groups to thrive despite all its rigorous restrictions and oversight? quite frightening, esp with india's laxity in every vital aspect of life.
2
France yet again strives to make it difficult to earn a living.
6
I was in a certain European capital for New Year's Eve (not in Paris) and it was IMPOSSIBLE to find a cab, although I dialed non stop for abut 4 hours. Ultimately, I hailed one from the street which went with no fare and charged me 10 times. I would have loved to have the option to call UBER!
3
All these arguments for/against Uber are really interesting to me, because the city where I live has no need or demand for Uber. Why? Because there are about 12 private cab companies that compete with each other and keep the prices low enough that there's absolutely no need for an alternative to the regular yellow taxis. The taxi companies all provide apps, SMS, and multiple other methods to call a cab - all for free, plus additional discounts, in order to stay competitive with each other. There's almost never a problem finding a cab on the street (the exception is rush hour when it's raining), and when you do have problems finding one, you can always use an app or SMS to call one. Usually they show up in about 6 minutes if you're anywhere near the city center.
Long story short, the places where Uber works are the places where taxi monopolies have artificially inflated the price of a cab ride to such an extent that consumers are simply forced to choose another form of transport. In places where cabs are inexpensive - due to competition - there is no real need for Uber.
Long story short, the places where Uber works are the places where taxi monopolies have artificially inflated the price of a cab ride to such an extent that consumers are simply forced to choose another form of transport. In places where cabs are inexpensive - due to competition - there is no real need for Uber.
11
The core issue is the ridiculously high price of the medallion (taxi license).
Cab drivers have invested in it as a work tool, just as (say) a baker takes a credit to buy oven and premises knowing that when he gets out of the business he will find a young baker to buy it from him again. One must think of it as immaterial capital that can be re-sold, not as a diploma (which it is not). Hence the fierce pushback against anything that might affect its value (killing the monoply would basically kill the medallion's value).
Parisian cabs have a poor reputation (justified in my personal experience) and there is little support for them from the people (those defending them come along the lines of "they are rude and expensive but Uber is the American evil"). They have a strong lobbying power that they have abused countless times. Yet they do have a point that scrapping the monopole entirely is unfair to the current drivers.
Powers that be ought to come up with a medium/long term plan to change the current situation (where a drastic shortage of cabs creates astronomic cab rates) or it will change by popular pressure and not for the best. Banning Uber and claiming "problem solved" is dangerous.
Cab drivers have invested in it as a work tool, just as (say) a baker takes a credit to buy oven and premises knowing that when he gets out of the business he will find a young baker to buy it from him again. One must think of it as immaterial capital that can be re-sold, not as a diploma (which it is not). Hence the fierce pushback against anything that might affect its value (killing the monoply would basically kill the medallion's value).
Parisian cabs have a poor reputation (justified in my personal experience) and there is little support for them from the people (those defending them come along the lines of "they are rude and expensive but Uber is the American evil"). They have a strong lobbying power that they have abused countless times. Yet they do have a point that scrapping the monopole entirely is unfair to the current drivers.
Powers that be ought to come up with a medium/long term plan to change the current situation (where a drastic shortage of cabs creates astronomic cab rates) or it will change by popular pressure and not for the best. Banning Uber and claiming "problem solved" is dangerous.
1
Uber destroys living wage jobs, creates subsistence wage jobs, and pockets the difference. Is Ms. Alderman in Uber's employ? Because Uber's own drivers are not, which means they assume all the risk. But this author isn't interested in serious analysis, she prefers to deal in anecdotes on wages and working conditions and neoliberal clichés of France's regulatory environment and labor laws. Because clearly what France needs is more Silicon Valley-inspired precarious employment, speculative bubbles, and gross wealth inequality.
10
I have always had good luck with Paris cab drivers.
I spend several months every year in Paris. If I need a cab, I order one on the Internet. Cabs have always arrived on time and the drivers have been pleasant, cooperative and usually eager to try out their English. They have always taken the shortest route, even though I have an accent and they could well figure that they could add mileage without my knowing it.
Some factors that might account for my different experiences: I have never tried to hail a cab on the street, I speak French and I have a French phone number (cost 20 Euro/mo), which might be essential for the taxi ordering service I use.
I spend several months every year in Paris. If I need a cab, I order one on the Internet. Cabs have always arrived on time and the drivers have been pleasant, cooperative and usually eager to try out their English. They have always taken the shortest route, even though I have an accent and they could well figure that they could add mileage without my knowing it.
Some factors that might account for my different experiences: I have never tried to hail a cab on the street, I speak French and I have a French phone number (cost 20 Euro/mo), which might be essential for the taxi ordering service I use.
3
Back in the 90s, my French girlfriend worked for Fed Ex in Paris. Part of her job was trying to explain the concept of "absolutely, positively" on time to French Fed Ex drivers. Hilarious stories, and I have a bunch of similar ones from my time working in France. Bottomline , Uber will win, it's a foregone conclusion, but ritual must always be honored. Best part so far? The French government addressing the problem by increasing the police force 25% while adding zero licensed cabs. Classic.
5
An interesting statistic to find out here would be whether or not Uber has had a measurable effect on taxi drivers' income in Paris. A quick tour of google didn't discover anything, other than an article from that far-left publication, Forbes, claiming that taxi drivers' income will go up because of Uber and Lyft.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/timworstall/2013/12/12/how-lyft-and-uber-wil...
I will never use Uber because I have friends who are cabbies and I wish to be loyal to them. But I must say, none of them report income loss that can even indirectly be traced to Uber.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/timworstall/2013/12/12/how-lyft-and-uber-wil...
I will never use Uber because I have friends who are cabbies and I wish to be loyal to them. But I must say, none of them report income loss that can even indirectly be traced to Uber.
If it is illegal, it is illegal.
There is no need to quote scenes from Casablanca that do happen in Paris as the police works different in France.
So play it the American way:
If Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp break the law continuously then put out an arrest warrant, take them into custody, take their entire possessions and charge them for what it is worth.
Press inwards into heir organization, charge a few drivers and give them a deal if they provide evidence against their bosses.
If it works on FIFA, why not on Uber?
But do not write Robin Hood style stories about how Uber is ohh so cool.
If it is a crime, it still is a crime if it is big, or committed by a US company around the world.
Uber is not only illegal in France but in countless other places as well.
So arrest them and get on with it.
There is no need to quote scenes from Casablanca that do happen in Paris as the police works different in France.
So play it the American way:
If Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp break the law continuously then put out an arrest warrant, take them into custody, take their entire possessions and charge them for what it is worth.
Press inwards into heir organization, charge a few drivers and give them a deal if they provide evidence against their bosses.
If it works on FIFA, why not on Uber?
But do not write Robin Hood style stories about how Uber is ohh so cool.
If it is a crime, it still is a crime if it is big, or committed by a US company around the world.
Uber is not only illegal in France but in countless other places as well.
So arrest them and get on with it.
4
Or maybe the time has come to throw out those laws and make Uber legal.
If that would be what the people want, then there is a procedure for it.
It is called a democratic process.
So if you want these laws to be abolished, fine, no problem.
Just bring yourself into a position in which you can be elected for office, get elected and then find a majority for deciding on the law.
But simply calling for instating a "lex americana" on a global basis does not work.
It is called a democratic process.
So if you want these laws to be abolished, fine, no problem.
Just bring yourself into a position in which you can be elected for office, get elected and then find a majority for deciding on the law.
But simply calling for instating a "lex americana" on a global basis does not work.
Calling Uber "Orwellian" and a "criminal enterprise" is ironic given that the taxi business has been ripping off consumers and underpaying drivers for decades.
The fact that a taxi license costs $200,000 in Paris is proof that the business is ridiculously profitable -- for the owner of the license, not for the driver.
But as bad as things are in Paris, they are worse in the U.S. Until recently a taxi medallion cost $400,000 in Philadelphia and Chicago. That means taxis were basically a license for the medallion owner to sit back and print money.
Uber is not going to put medallion taxis out of business. There is lots of evidence that Uber will expand the market and there will still be plenty of business for conventional taxis for the foresseable future.
What will happen is probably that drivers will be paid more fairly. What the medallion owners are really worried about right now is not so much that they'll lose riders, but that they'll lose their drivers to Uber, which pays much better.
The fact that a taxi license costs $200,000 in Paris is proof that the business is ridiculously profitable -- for the owner of the license, not for the driver.
But as bad as things are in Paris, they are worse in the U.S. Until recently a taxi medallion cost $400,000 in Philadelphia and Chicago. That means taxis were basically a license for the medallion owner to sit back and print money.
Uber is not going to put medallion taxis out of business. There is lots of evidence that Uber will expand the market and there will still be plenty of business for conventional taxis for the foresseable future.
What will happen is probably that drivers will be paid more fairly. What the medallion owners are really worried about right now is not so much that they'll lose riders, but that they'll lose their drivers to Uber, which pays much better.
5
Medallions were sold as the right to street hails. Uber is doing virtual street hails without a Medallion. There's nothing more to say about it.
1
Sorry, but most of this 'argument' sounds like PR right off the Uber home page.
1
The people bashing Uber on here have clearly never spent much time in Paris. It's nearly impossible to find a cab in Paris, at any time. And when you do, it can easily cost 50 euros for a short ride (in cash). I understand the legitimate concerns about Uber, but Uber's success shows there is unmet demand for transport. I now live in Malaysia, where the cabs refuse 90% of the time to use the metered fare and drive recklessly, and so I use Uber nearly every day. But I've also lived in Bangkok and New York, where there are cabs aplenty and never needed Uber. If the countries want to fight unregulated services like Uber, they should build a taxi system that works and not give in to cartels who profit off govt bestowed monopolies by disregarding consumer right and gouging.
35
@DCServer. By your reasoning, if a foreigner finds something too expensive in America - oh, like medical care - he is entitled to go to the emergency room, lie about his address, receive the care, and then forget to pay about it, all because he finds American health care too expensive. And then, like you, give the patronizing advice, "If the US wants to fight against this abuse, it should build a health-care system that works and does not give in to cartels which profit off it."
Your wants should not be the deciding factor here. When you are in a foreign country, you are a guest, not the master.
Your wants should not be the deciding factor here. When you are in a foreign country, you are a guest, not the master.
14
Don't get me wrong, I'm all for Uber. But, you're simply wrong about not being able to find a taxi in Paris, I've never had difficulty hailing a cab, at any time. And the only time I've ever paid over 50 euros for a cab was if I took one to the airport. You're putting out false information.
3
DCserver, I do not know what you are doing wrong, but getting a taxi in Paris is quite easy, and I am talking about a legitimate taxi not an Uber one.
As for Malaysia, using the meter for a Teksi is the law and they only try to avoid it when they sense a very stupid tourist.
In about a 1000 rides in a Teksi in M'sia it only happened to me once that a driver tried to avoid using the meter and I was never rejected a ride even during rush hour while there was Monsun rain fall.
Sorry, but having a personal problem with taxis in certain countries does not make a point for the introduction of a law breaking system just because it comes from the US.
A crime is a crime is a crime even if the company that breaks the law is a US one.
As for Malaysia, using the meter for a Teksi is the law and they only try to avoid it when they sense a very stupid tourist.
In about a 1000 rides in a Teksi in M'sia it only happened to me once that a driver tried to avoid using the meter and I was never rejected a ride even during rush hour while there was Monsun rain fall.
Sorry, but having a personal problem with taxis in certain countries does not make a point for the introduction of a law breaking system just because it comes from the US.
A crime is a crime is a crime even if the company that breaks the law is a US one.
5
UBER is not a cab company it's a matchmaking service between a rider and a driver. As typical of high tech, it's disruptive towards established monopolies. Music, Books, movies, shopping--it provides efficiency which is beneficial to the customer. Being good for people however is not good for monopolistic entities like the Paris Government(tax crazed) and their taxi supply squeeze and medallion owners.
UBER doesn't need to provide insurance-it's a contracting company-and it's a lot better than a cabbie's benefits. Anyone thinking a 'cab driver" is a great job by the time the car owner and medallion owner get through with you, I have a bridge to sell you.
The French are always prone to defensive stances on gravy train income-which is why their economy has failed in so many different ways. Taxing millionaires, stomping on competition, subsidizing wine and bread. It goes on and on and the culture is staid
UBER doesn't need to provide insurance-it's a contracting company-and it's a lot better than a cabbie's benefits. Anyone thinking a 'cab driver" is a great job by the time the car owner and medallion owner get through with you, I have a bridge to sell you.
The French are always prone to defensive stances on gravy train income-which is why their economy has failed in so many different ways. Taxing millionaires, stomping on competition, subsidizing wine and bread. It goes on and on and the culture is staid
5
We used UberPop in Paris 3 or 4 times a day during a week long stay in Paris last month. We were traveling with a slightly disabled older lady with limited mobility who couldn't use the Metro. (Normally we'd use the Metro all day long). We loved UberPop. The first few 'regular' taxis, from the airport and to our first night concert where extremely expensive. Paris taxis start the meter as soon as they get a 'fare', in our case the hotel arranged the taxi to pick us up and it had 18 Euro's on before we had even driven an inch. UberPop was exceptional in every way. Very nice drivers. Clean, immaculate cars. Always professional. It was like having our own town car. I'd highly recommend UberPop. Way cheaper and so much nicer than 'normal' Paris taxis.
12
I had a similar experience in Paris.
The Taxi arrived 20 minutes ahead of schedule and immediately turned on the meter. When we showed up and I complained, the driver suddenly lost all his command of the English language.
It's hard to sympathize with a bunch of crooks.
The Taxi arrived 20 minutes ahead of schedule and immediately turned on the meter. When we showed up and I complained, the driver suddenly lost all his command of the English language.
It's hard to sympathize with a bunch of crooks.
MK
Our experience with Uber in several cities has been exactly the same as yours. I especially enjoy the offer of water and candy and an invitation to choose the kind of music on the car radio if the ride is of any length. And what a treat for a driver in Paris to actually help with luggage!!!
My wife and I are frequent visitors to Paris and other areas of France. In the past we've also always used the Metro - but we're now somewhat elderly and getting around all the connecting stations on longer trips isn't as easy for us as it used to be. Uber has been a Godsend for us.
Someone remarked above that finding a taxi in Paris isn't easy, and they're right, it isn't easy - it's impossible unless you happen to blunder onto a taxi stand!
I frankly believe the taxi industry in Paris has brought this on itself. I have a vivid recollection of our latest trip to Paris a year ago that illustrates a part of the problem: We'd just arrived by train from Lyon and leaving the station we encountered a line of about 200 people waiting in line for taxis. In the street at the head of this line, about two dozen cabs were parked, with the drivers standing around smoking and talking and no one making any attempt whatever to move things along. We waited for about 15 or 20 minutes, then left the line and walked about a block from the station and called Uber - and had a ride to our hotel in about five minutes. Those poor souls playing by the taxi-drivers' rules may still be waiting there!
Our experience with Uber in several cities has been exactly the same as yours. I especially enjoy the offer of water and candy and an invitation to choose the kind of music on the car radio if the ride is of any length. And what a treat for a driver in Paris to actually help with luggage!!!
My wife and I are frequent visitors to Paris and other areas of France. In the past we've also always used the Metro - but we're now somewhat elderly and getting around all the connecting stations on longer trips isn't as easy for us as it used to be. Uber has been a Godsend for us.
Someone remarked above that finding a taxi in Paris isn't easy, and they're right, it isn't easy - it's impossible unless you happen to blunder onto a taxi stand!
I frankly believe the taxi industry in Paris has brought this on itself. I have a vivid recollection of our latest trip to Paris a year ago that illustrates a part of the problem: We'd just arrived by train from Lyon and leaving the station we encountered a line of about 200 people waiting in line for taxis. In the street at the head of this line, about two dozen cabs were parked, with the drivers standing around smoking and talking and no one making any attempt whatever to move things along. We waited for about 15 or 20 minutes, then left the line and walked about a block from the station and called Uber - and had a ride to our hotel in about five minutes. Those poor souls playing by the taxi-drivers' rules may still be waiting there!
There are few careers I empathize with more than a cabbie. I put myself through college pushing hack. No one tips better than me. But come on! This is a classic case of free enterprise in action. You can't stop cream from rising to the top, nor do we want to. Capitalism is built on survival of the fittest. Endless, unstoppable enhancements, in the end, benefit all. Europeans need to get their head out of the sand. Now Uber in China? That's a different story - it's not safe for either the driver or the passenger.
5
I would wager that the majority of persons, when explained its precepts without identifying it, what reject the ridiculous virtually religiosity of capitalism. Too mch is accepted on faith in this country - the laughable "invisible hand " overseeing the [rigged] market is about as scientific as AA and its "higher power." Invoking capitalism to justify every economic pillage, war for resources and fleecing of the workers by such as those "high-speed traders" who could not even explain the market as exposed by Michael Lewis.
With climate change, excessive population, mass dislocations, and limited resources, perhaps human progress could be measured by something humanistic rather than rise in per cent of GDP. Most people would choose a less stressful more equitable lifestyle once control is wrested, probably by force, from the current crop of sociopaths running business and their bought lackeys in government.
With climate change, excessive population, mass dislocations, and limited resources, perhaps human progress could be measured by something humanistic rather than rise in per cent of GDP. Most people would choose a less stressful more equitable lifestyle once control is wrested, probably by force, from the current crop of sociopaths running business and their bought lackeys in government.
18
There have been numerous NY Times articles about Uber over the past few years - but no mention or analysis about the impact Uber has on traffic and congestion and pollution?
In NYC, there are clearly many more large black SUVs - Uber vehicles - on the streets or parked waiting for the next customer.
There are some really negative environmental implications here. Why no discussion?
In NYC, there are clearly many more large black SUVs - Uber vehicles - on the streets or parked waiting for the next customer.
There are some really negative environmental implications here. Why no discussion?
16
If you think Paris is bad, try taking a cab in Nice. Eight years ago a 5-minute ride was €20. Take it or leave it. But enough with the France-bashing —as the article says, "...Spain, Italy, Germany and the Netherlands recently banned the service from operating." Admittedly there are issues with those who have invested good (large) money in medallions, including here in NYC, but we should recognize the GREAT benefit enterprises like Uber and Air B'n'B bring to our current under- and unemployment problems, which of course ripple outward to other severe societal problems. People need and deserve a means to make a living, and when they do, it benefits us all. We need Misaire to succeed.
6
I live in my own condo; if anyone even thought about using our common areas and their condos in the service of a grifter like Air BnB I would have planning and zoning in action immediately. I do not want strangers with flimsy if any background checks wandering in and out of our neighborhood, potentially engaging in criminal behavior and generally overloading the facilities, expecting as vacationers to engage in the puerile American custom of "party all night." A nuisance suit in the 10,090 limit small claims court would get the owner's attention. These neighborhoods were zoned SF for a reason and I'm sick of these takers hiding behind the almost religiosity of capitalism in this silly country. Yeh, and econ is a "science."
17
Yes, Uber and Air B and B offer people an opportunity to make money and the arguement can be made that this is good for any country's economy so it should be supported. There is a very big problem with that concept though, these business models are illegal and if they weren't they should be. Licensed taxi drivers in some cities are bad enough but the casual amateur drivers taking to the roads for businesses like Uber are on the average a serious problem whether it's the way they drive or simply that they block the streets looking for whoever arranged for a pickup. The fact insurance companies don't pay if you make a claim on these casual drivers because they don't have commercial insurance should be enough to keep you out of their cars. Air B and B is another issue. Speak to anyone in a building that has a few Air B and B apartments and they'll tell you that their apartment building is horrible now because there are tourists moving in and out every few days who act like drunken college students on Spring Break in Florida.
The worst thing about the time we live in is not all the wars or that California is running out of water but that with every tick of a clock more and more people think anything and everything is good if you make money from it even if it's bad. The masses have bought into the same logic that gave us an army of drug dealers on urban street corners selling crack and junk because it paid well so who cares if it's illegal and ruins peoples lives.
The worst thing about the time we live in is not all the wars or that California is running out of water but that with every tick of a clock more and more people think anything and everything is good if you make money from it even if it's bad. The masses have bought into the same logic that gave us an army of drug dealers on urban street corners selling crack and junk because it paid well so who cares if it's illegal and ruins peoples lives.
4
I have had airbnb clients and they all behave impeccably. Let me tell you something: if a service like airbnb or uber succeeds like wild fire is because they offer a good, safe product that benefits many. It's time for the laws to live in the present not 50 years ago.
But think of the Miracle of the Marne. Could the French Army really count on Uber to ferry troops to the front they way Paris taxis did in 1914?
9
You can relax. Only a small portion of the French army reached the Marne by cab in 1914, but it's a wonderful legend. Had Uber been around, they undoubtedly could have ferried many more troops and shortened the war!
2
That is not unusual. The British relied, in part, on civilian transport to evacuate Dunkirk in 1940 and to carry troops to the Falklands in 1982. Of course, Uber would use surge pricing in a similar situation. :-)
Instead of banning Uber outright, it should be given a proper regulatory frame.
Both taxis and uberauto (I don't know how else to call a vehicle working for Uber) serve similar purposes: they carry individual people door to door. For that reason, they should have cars in good condition and drivers that are well trained for their job. The key difference is that taxis can be hailed in the street.
The government could overhaul the system by creating a basic "professional car licence" which allows a certain car and driver to carry people for profit. In order to get a license, one would have to prove the car is safe and the driver is competent. The basic licence could be issued in unlimited quantities, which would make it less expensive in the secondary market. If the licensee wants to have the right to be hailed directly from the street, he would have to buy an additional licence on top of the other one (which could be limited in quantity).
Both taxis and uberauto (I don't know how else to call a vehicle working for Uber) serve similar purposes: they carry individual people door to door. For that reason, they should have cars in good condition and drivers that are well trained for their job. The key difference is that taxis can be hailed in the street.
The government could overhaul the system by creating a basic "professional car licence" which allows a certain car and driver to carry people for profit. In order to get a license, one would have to prove the car is safe and the driver is competent. The basic licence could be issued in unlimited quantities, which would make it less expensive in the secondary market. If the licensee wants to have the right to be hailed directly from the street, he would have to buy an additional licence on top of the other one (which could be limited in quantity).
7
"it should be given a proper regulatory frame"
So that more parasitic, self-serving government bureaucrats could try to justify their useless existence?
So that more parasitic, self-serving government bureaucrats could try to justify their useless existence?
1
A few weeks ago I took an UberPop vehicle from Paris Montmartre to Charles de Gaulle airport. I paid 30 euros, about a third less than a texi fare; service was flawless, the car was spotless, and I even got a couple of free chocolates. The driver said she went from selling real estate to ferrying clients around and is making a decent living from her current work.
I can't analyze the "big issues" around this service, but on a one-to-one level it makes life easier for many people.
I can't analyze the "big issues" around this service, but on a one-to-one level it makes life easier for many people.
17
Uber should treat its drivers as employees--because they are employees. Pay them benefits, reimburse them for car expenses, give them sick leave, vacation, etc. Nope. The model is exploitation. Money goes to the top and the drivers are left with the crumbs.
It would be refreshing to see a startup treat its workers with dignity, pay them a living wage and not worry solely about further enriching the already rich.
It would be refreshing to see a startup treat its workers with dignity, pay them a living wage and not worry solely about further enriching the already rich.
25
When do Uber drivers have to start driving? Whenever they want. When do they have to stop? Whenever they want. Who do they have to pick up? Whomever they want. When can they decide to take a day off? Whenever they want. What kind of cars do they drive? Whatever they want. Where do they drive to find a fare? Wherever they want. Does that strike you as an employee or an independent contractor? Is every eBay seller an employee of the company too?
11
It seems to be a business model that exploits prospective part time workers who do not have employee status nor could participate in a company plan. What could prevent a legitimate French medallion taxi driver to be an UberPop Driver? Should there be a city law say an entry minimum limit of autos provided by Uber taxi service. With a recent investment of 100 million dollars by a notable investor in Uber, a question to ask is why aren’t there Uber taxis stands with a queue of Uber taxis or circling airport Uber taxis . Uber would seem to have such deep pockets.
1
This is hilarious on so many levels. I speak with almost every uber driver I take. They're not exploited. They're thrilled to have a fair deal and easy system to pick up efficient fares. Many of them quit other jobs (real estate broker, CPA) to drive for uber. You know why?
Because they make more money! If anything it's the poor yellow cabbies who are exploited by abusive medallion owners and oppressive regulations that take money from their pockets.
Because they make more money! If anything it's the poor yellow cabbies who are exploited by abusive medallion owners and oppressive regulations that take money from their pockets.
I was taking the traditional taxi to the airport. The rate was crazy $35 -$45 for a fifteen minute drive. The cabs are dirty and the drivers are not helpful as in loading luggage into the trunk. They also tend to be quite rude -- and I know this sounds like a generalization but being from NYC I know a rude cabbie when I encounter one. I was skeptical about using Uber especially when trying to get to an early morning flight at MIA. Well no more. The drivers that I have encountered have been courteous, their cars are spotless and the fee is 1/3 of what I had paid with yellow cab. LONG LIVE UBER!!!
16
Said the Uber employee.
14
Said the medallion owner
Uber may be opportunistic niche exploiters but they would not exist but for public attitudes that label the concept of government regulation as "bad," while extolling the benefits of unregulated enterprises operating outside the law. Uber and its fellow travelers in a variety of industries are not social service organizations designed to help people, but are predatory pirates essentially operating outside of society because they do not even acknowledge government authority.
32
"Legitimate taxi drivers" don't exist in the way most people think that they do. What we have today in most cities are a bunch drivers who are slaves to the owners of the cabs. Or slaves to the banks paying for medallions that cost more than they should because of monopolies. Or a few who've inherited their medallions and don't want competition in any form to crop up. Urban cab service in Paris or New York or Boston or San Francisco is predatory, providing big profits and capital gains to the owners. It's really bizarre to think that some commenters here don't realize that in France benefits are provided by the state, not the employer. I can also tell that there are a lot of people commenting who've never tried to find a cab in Paris on a rainy night or one in NYC between 7AM and 9AM.
Having said that, it would be easy to force Uber to use licensed drivers, have proper insurance, etc. Just pass the required ordinances to make the playing field level and blow up the monopoly. The fact that the authorities would rather bust Uber drivers than fix the system means that they are either corrupt or incompetent.
Having said that, it would be easy to force Uber to use licensed drivers, have proper insurance, etc. Just pass the required ordinances to make the playing field level and blow up the monopoly. The fact that the authorities would rather bust Uber drivers than fix the system means that they are either corrupt or incompetent.
77
It's a very good point about requiring qualified drivers and decent insurance. But why require that of Uber when most cities don't require it of the medallion taxis. In Philadelphia the liability insurance carried by regulated taxis is an absurdly low $15,000 -- which isn't even enough money to set a broken collarbone these days. Uber's liability insurance is far superior. If you're going to be knocked off your bike by a taxi, you'd better hope it's an Uber taxi.
In NYC, there are taxi drivers who bought medallions in city auctions to have the exclusive privilege for hail business. They borrowed millions of dollars from banks and handed it over to NYC government. I am one of them. Where do you believe we stand in your wonderful theory of "blowing up the monopoly?" ... and, btw, that monopoly was created by the government, so if the governments are to consider your suggestion then we should be compensated for our loses. Don't get me wrong, I am all for the level playing field, however, level playing field should force Uber to play by the rules not create rules that favor Uber without paying for the exclusive privilege to operate as taxis. If that's allowed, well, then the governments should live with the consequences of their actions.
I do not think it would be that easy; as the article mentions, Uber driver-partners are freelancers, not employees. French law is very protective of employees, and Uber's ability to cut drivers loose for having a low rating and their status as "freelancers" would contravene labor laws.
In other words, even if Uber is using licensed drivers with proper insurance, operating a massive fleet of freelancers as the primary labor force as profit engine without providing the benefits, working hours, and job security generally afforded to employees in France will be a tough hurdle to clear, nevermind the opposition of taxi drivers with a huge investment in medallions and the monopoly.
Yes, Uber is awesome and certainly has a place in France; but reconciling Uber's model to the French system won't necessarily be easy.
In other words, even if Uber is using licensed drivers with proper insurance, operating a massive fleet of freelancers as the primary labor force as profit engine without providing the benefits, working hours, and job security generally afforded to employees in France will be a tough hurdle to clear, nevermind the opposition of taxi drivers with a huge investment in medallions and the monopoly.
Yes, Uber is awesome and certainly has a place in France; but reconciling Uber's model to the French system won't necessarily be easy.
1
Down with Uber! Vive la Resistance!
Yah, I'm going to be against Uber until they start operating by the laws, establishing some insurance coverage, providing benefits to their employees, and basically acting like something better than the quick cash scheme they currently are. Hope France drives them out, leaving the business for legitimate taxi drivers.
Yah, I'm going to be against Uber until they start operating by the laws, establishing some insurance coverage, providing benefits to their employees, and basically acting like something better than the quick cash scheme they currently are. Hope France drives them out, leaving the business for legitimate taxi drivers.
31
Said the taxi driver.
3
to echo @ross salinger above, uber in europe is not the same as uber in the US. health care coverage is not provided by the employer. every freelance worker in france--like myself--has social insurance. it takes 40% of your after tax income and isn't deductible, but it means no one in france has to hold social networking rallies to cover their cancer costs.
There's just something predatory, and vaguely illegitimate, about this company. If I had a chance to use their service, I would pass it up. I hope France can step over them.
26
I first heard about Uber from a cab driver. He ranted about Uber all the way from the airport to downtown. His car was filthy and he pressed me to pay him with cash rather than a credit card. I usually enjoy chatting with cab drivers, but that ride was unpleasant.
So I was curious about Uber and installed the app on my phone and gave it a try. I could see why that driver was angry. Uber and Lyft work better and typically cost less than half of what a cab charges..I can't imagine riding in a cab if Uber or Lyft are available.
So I was curious about Uber and installed the app on my phone and gave it a try. I could see why that driver was angry. Uber and Lyft work better and typically cost less than half of what a cab charges..I can't imagine riding in a cab if Uber or Lyft are available.
14
Comments in support of Uber have a striking, boilerplate quality to them. "His car was filthy" is an oft-used phrase, for example.
16
Probably because the cars ARE FILTHY. I'm assuming that you have been in a cab before.
9
I realize that "filthy" is subjective.
The front seat had a box with books, notebooks, etc., so sitting up front was out of the question.
Paper wrappers from fast food were on the floor in the front seat, too.
The back seat's floor hadn't been vacuumed in weeks. The armrests were dirty. The seats were dirty, too.
The windows were smudgy. It kind of seemed like the guy was living in his yellow cab.
I can't say much about the outside of the car because I rode at night. An aging Crown Vic.
But mostly I just remember how that guy ranted about Uber and how he had that box in the front seat along will all those wadded up paper bags.
The front seat had a box with books, notebooks, etc., so sitting up front was out of the question.
Paper wrappers from fast food were on the floor in the front seat, too.
The back seat's floor hadn't been vacuumed in weeks. The armrests were dirty. The seats were dirty, too.
The windows were smudgy. It kind of seemed like the guy was living in his yellow cab.
I can't say much about the outside of the car because I rode at night. An aging Crown Vic.
But mostly I just remember how that guy ranted about Uber and how he had that box in the front seat along will all those wadded up paper bags.
3
How fast individual opinions will change when that unlicensed Uber driver who may not be a legal immigrant, a citizen, a taxpayer,. Does he have a drivers license? A commercial drivers license ? A chauffeurs licenses? Who is doing an in person verification, a web sit app can be fooled by fake papers. Then what about insurance. Remember regular auto insurance does not cover vehicles for hire or used for commercial purposes. Do not expect your Geico, State Farm, All State, or Minimum State coverage to cover anything. Get in a wreck on the way to pick up a fair or trolling for a fair, not covered by Ubers policy. Your policy will say not covered, oops. Leaving some shady location some fare had you drop them off, that won't be covered. What if the driver without a background check later break's into your house. Or perhaps he sells your address info to a crime syndicate for use in home invasions, or fraud. Folks are putting way too much trust in un vetted individuals to save a buck.
All while a few are making billions and not providing workers with any of the benefits of employment. Remember Uber stress's repeatedly the drivers are not employees. The provide no health insurance, no pensions, no mileage reimbursement, no car maintenance or inspections of cars, no 401Ks, no job security.
All while a few are making billions and not providing workers with any of the benefits of employment. Remember Uber stress's repeatedly the drivers are not employees. The provide no health insurance, no pensions, no mileage reimbursement, no car maintenance or inspections of cars, no 401Ks, no job security.
15
You think that after paying for a medallion a cab driver just parks his vehicle during his off hours? Or does he let a friend or relative drive the car for a cut of the action?
4
As much as I dislike what Uber, Lyft, Airbnb and other so-called concierge smart-phone apps are doing to regulated business markets, I think they will win this struggle in the long run because freedom is such a powerful concept around the world, even if freedom also means the freedom to ruin your livelihood, the freedom to skirt legitimate local regulations (think of what the bed-and-breakfast app, Airbnb, does to local rental markets: fire escapes? who needs those?), and the freedom to trade their stock valuations in the billions based on Wall Street's need for greed.
The basic Uber-like concept is so powerful, it has and will continue to succeed. For every specialized cop trying to track down UberPOP drivers in Paris, there are millions of unknown Uber drivers popping up everywhere around the world to earn extra money for themselves. Let's get Uber and rest of these services regulated by our politicians (yes, I know how naive that sounds) instead of believing we can stop them, because we can't.
9
What are you talking about ? How does AirBNB not have fire escapes? All the apartments need to be habitable dwellings.
What are politicians going to do to make AirBNB or Uber better?
What are politicians going to do to make AirBNB or Uber better?
3
jm in bx, ny: you must rent out a unit using Airbnb. City and county regulations often stipulate the need for certain safety features in rental dwellings, such as motels and hotels. If the rental is not covered by regulations of any kind, the safety features don't need to be present. This is how Airbnb rentals can be cheaper than regulated rentals. You might think twice about renting out a bedroom if you have to install water sprinklers in the entire upstairs of your house.
7
But why would a house rented for a week require sprinklers when a house rented for a month does not? The regulations for habitability should be identical regardless of the length of the rental.
La Belle France has never embraced the capitalist system. Hence, their miserable employment numbers. Uber is an affrontement to the status quo. Best of luck with that.
8
Look at how deregulation has improved air travel, banks, and the workplace.
23
uber makes billions and the drivers are on their own. the union busting app.
the face of internet capitalism ain't pretty. avoid regulations and insurance and make out like a bandit.
the face of internet capitalism ain't pretty. avoid regulations and insurance and make out like a bandit.
11
Yeah, sure. I was in a cab once and the guy drove like a lunatic. I called the number listed to make a complaint and, long story short, the person on the phone made it next to impossible to complete the process. I think uber would be more responsible and responsive because their brand is at stake.
5
Many commenters are sharing their justifications for using Uber over cabs, and insinuating that whatever benefits Uber has are intrinsic. I doubt that. Around here, I can get a real cab anytime I want one. I can even hail it with my phone ( call or app ) if that's a huge deal. I can schedule one to show tomorrow to take me to the airport, or wherever. They will text me an update when they are on the way.
Best of all, the cab that shows up isn't part of a criminal enterprise.
Even if you think Uber's highly-questionable business model is the greatest thing since sliced bread, how can you support a company that does business the way they do? Their treatment of journalists alone is despicable.
Best of all, the cab that shows up isn't part of a criminal enterprise.
Even if you think Uber's highly-questionable business model is the greatest thing since sliced bread, how can you support a company that does business the way they do? Their treatment of journalists alone is despicable.
16
"The French resist as Uber tries to conquer Paris"
A brush too broad.
Many French Do like Uber. That's why it's being used :-)
How about: "French Socialist Government tries to outlaw Uber" , as both the major of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, and the President of France, Ms. Holland, are member of the PS , the Parti Socialist ?
Seems more accurate.
A brush too broad.
Many French Do like Uber. That's why it's being used :-)
How about: "French Socialist Government tries to outlaw Uber" , as both the major of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, and the President of France, Ms. Holland, are member of the PS , the Parti Socialist ?
Seems more accurate.
7
Really? I would be willing to bet that millions more French citizens voted for the current government that have used Uber in France. Perhaps, a poll would show support for Ubur, but, clearly, to date, direct support of the government far exceeds direct support of Uber.
Please! And you think Sarko and his ilk wouldn't do the same? Taxi (Uber) and Hotel (AirBnb, Booking, etc) regulations are there for a reason...to protect the public. All of the "sharing" companies began by flaunting laws and regulations, and now that they have a cash hoard, they are lobbying hard to change the laws and regulations to fit their business model. The sucker like me who thought I had bought an apartment in a small tranquil 8 owner co-op in the Toulouse area, has to fight in court one owner and Booking who thought they could contravene our coop rules that forbid BnB activity. These companies need to be fought.
In some US cities, taxi fares are reasonable. New York is one. In others, they are extortionate. Boston is an example; unbelievable.
5
One point hasn't been mentioned anywhere so far yet it makes quite a lot of difference: professional cabs in Paris work 10 hours/day (forget about the 35h/w) whereas those working for Uber do it some hours per week as a mean to make some pocket money.
It's their mean to make a living which is at stake here, which is not the case of the ones Uber pretends to give employment to.
It's their mean to make a living which is at stake here, which is not the case of the ones Uber pretends to give employment to.
20
UBER is just another component in the corporate dismantling of the economy. Good luck to those corporations when we are all poor, but they'll already have gotten theirs. France fought a revolution over this sort of thing, it's about time we also started a revolution.
9
Free market fighting the oligopoly! Any student of economics knows that Oligopolists have advantage over the common folk when lobbying Regulators. Taxi drivers have been well entrenched with the local governments for at least a century and it will take a hard long fight to remove this cancer off the society. I hope free market wins and voters will send the elected officials, who favor oligopolies over the free market, to well deserved unemployment.
The free market only exists on a level playing field. Uber wants no part of laws or regulations.
3
Is this the same France that has to subsidize fake companies for its vast numbers of unemployed people to fake work at for no pay? They are regulating themselves to death. Figure out a way to make this work with Uber - more people employed is a good thing.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/31/business/international/in-europe-fake-...
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/31/business/international/in-europe-fake-...
3
Yep. Same backward France!
This is why the French economy is in the toilet, and it will stay there until the French stop seeing competition as a bad thing. Quelle domage!
4
I really don't get all this Uber nonsense. When I need a cab I call a car service on my phone and the car is here in 3-5 minutes. So people call an Uber car on an app. Big whoop. This is worth $50 billion? What a scam...
24
NYC must be different from San Francisco, then. I like the article mentioned how the founders first got their inspiration from how awful SF cabs were, and probably still are. Believe me, if you ever went through the joys of ordering an SF cab by phone back in 2005, you would absolutely get "this Uber nonsense".
What a story. Only in France (and the NY Times) could an efficient, modern utility App like Uber be looked upon as a scourge. It saves time and money for users, reduces traffic and cars idling, and most of all it breaks up taxi cartels that abuse drivers and should have been outlawed years ago.
France's entire mindset is to hold on to a nostalgic past and a way of life that simply can't compete. Great place to visit, but glad I don't live there.
France's entire mindset is to hold on to a nostalgic past and a way of life that simply can't compete. Great place to visit, but glad I don't live there.
1
They operate by breaking the law. I'll sell you tomatoes for 50% of the supermarket price. Don't ask me how I got them, that would be an 'unfair burden' and 'stifling innovation.'
6
Substituting taxi cartels that abuse drivers with an app company that abuses drivers is not progress.
5
The one great advantage of Uber in France, particularly for tourists, is unlike virtually every other transportation industry in France, Uber has never gone on strike, and likely never will.
9
When I visited Paris last summer, I was amazed at the availability of cabs. It was nothing like I had ever seen before in Paris. Travel within the city became a pleasure, rather than an unpleasant chore. At the time, I did not understand the striking change. Obviously, it was due to Uber alleviating the prior cab shortage. I am not likely to be an Uber user, but much enjoy this effect.
9
There's a reason that France is far behind Germany in economic development.
In Germany Uber is outlawed in a lot of cities.
2
I use black car services in New York a lot. I ask every driver if they also drive for Uber. Every single one says "no" or "not anymore." They tell me that Uber treats them badly, the pay is low and Uber customers are rude and entitled. I honestly don't care one way or the other about Uber but the differences in Uber's public statements and how the front line drivers feel is striking.
17
"uber customers are rude and entitled".
Well, uber customers are the representation of the majority of the population.
Well, uber customers are the representation of the majority of the population.
I use LeCab in Paris. Way better. Uber could learn a lot about a custom car service from them.
3
YES LE CAB! why didn't the author reach out to them? i'm insanely loyal to that company. wonderful, conscientious, lovely drivers, great cars, cheaper than taxis. i've had only two uber experiences in paris and both were awful. vive le cab.
Paris has the worst cab service of any city I've every lived or traveled in. For example if you call for a cab, they start the meter when they get the call, so you could have the thing arrive and have 5 euros on the meter. They are the most arrogant cab drivers anywhere. And they don't have any real training; they are just drivers with attitudes.
Contrast with London cabbies who take four years to learn every alleyway and landmark in the city (on scooter), to learn traffic patterns, and so on, who are eminently courteous and almost always interesting people.
Paris needs Uber. Keep it out of London.
Contrast with London cabbies who take four years to learn every alleyway and landmark in the city (on scooter), to learn traffic patterns, and so on, who are eminently courteous and almost always interesting people.
Paris needs Uber. Keep it out of London.
26
100% agree. also, london, whose taxi drivers are each and every one a miracle of good manners and knowledge, has had its own ecosystem for years, with private car companies like addison lee, which play by the rules, and "mini cabs," which don't. they don't need uber like paris so desperately does. le cab is a more conscientious company than uber, it's the one i take almost exclusively when i need a lift. the government here goes a long way to close the social protection gap that uber drivers stateside do not enjoy. all we're seeing is the power of the monopoly of G7 and taxis bleus, which are owned by the same family.
I've had bad experiences with taxi drivers,--those that lacked working seatbelts, that reeked of cigarettes, that including a drive-long anti-semitic rant by a Greek driver who had no idea I was Jewish. I usually use cabs as little as possible.
That said, Uber troubles me for several reasons. The main reason it is a monopoly in its own service area. To my knowledge, no other company exists in app form. If I want to use an app form, I *have to* use Uber. The problem with this is as it grows, it will both strangle any other start up business & also will strangle working class drivers who need jobs that can support a family.
Also Uber is being given a subsidy through the gov't by not having to abide by laws & fees taxi companies have to. This is exactly like any number of companies owned by bankers & big investors that are taking over middle class jobs: Charter schools that don't abide by the same laws as public schools, airbnb that doesn't abide by the same laws as hotels, online stores that don't abide by the laws & taxes as brick & mortar. My brother, a small business pharm owner, is being strangled by online pharmacies that undercut prices through unregulated dispensing & aligning with insurance companies.
Huge strangling monopolies funded by the government that undercut competition--that's not capitalism. We have a choice now, but as they get more powerful, then what? Think long term, not short term.
That said, Uber troubles me for several reasons. The main reason it is a monopoly in its own service area. To my knowledge, no other company exists in app form. If I want to use an app form, I *have to* use Uber. The problem with this is as it grows, it will both strangle any other start up business & also will strangle working class drivers who need jobs that can support a family.
Also Uber is being given a subsidy through the gov't by not having to abide by laws & fees taxi companies have to. This is exactly like any number of companies owned by bankers & big investors that are taking over middle class jobs: Charter schools that don't abide by the same laws as public schools, airbnb that doesn't abide by the same laws as hotels, online stores that don't abide by the laws & taxes as brick & mortar. My brother, a small business pharm owner, is being strangled by online pharmacies that undercut prices through unregulated dispensing & aligning with insurance companies.
Huge strangling monopolies funded by the government that undercut competition--that's not capitalism. We have a choice now, but as they get more powerful, then what? Think long term, not short term.
16
dcl,
You wrote "If I want to use an app form, I *have to* use Uber." I would be shocked and amazed if that is true in your area. I have several apps on my phone right now -- none Uber or Lyft -- with which I can hail a ride here. Several local taxi companies have their own apps and I find it hard to believe that's unique to this area.
You wrote "If I want to use an app form, I *have to* use Uber." I would be shocked and amazed if that is true in your area. I have several apps on my phone right now -- none Uber or Lyft -- with which I can hail a ride here. Several local taxi companies have their own apps and I find it hard to believe that's unique to this area.
Neither side is entirely in the right. It's hard to blame taxi drivers who have paid exorbitant fees for medallions for bemoaning the competition. At the same time the current system is essentially a cartel that uses thuggish tactics like traffic slowdowns to protect its monopoly, to the detriment of the riding public.And everyone is hurt when new technology isn't allowed to replace a sclerotic, antiquated, inefficient system or ride hailing.
Clearly, a compromise is called for. I suggest as a human alternative that Uber and any similar business that wants to operate in Paris be required to contribute to a fund that reimburses cab drivers for any reduction in the selling price of a medallion. In effect, they would have to buy into the system.
Clearly, a compromise is called for. I suggest as a human alternative that Uber and any similar business that wants to operate in Paris be required to contribute to a fund that reimburses cab drivers for any reduction in the selling price of a medallion. In effect, they would have to buy into the system.
2
There is much to what you say - the solution may not take the precise form you outline, but the essential principle - transitioning to a new paradigm, while mitigating the impact for stakeholders - something along those lines may well happen.
The same principle could be applied to reforming entitlements, education, healthcare, etc.
The same principle could be applied to reforming entitlements, education, healthcare, etc.
1
I'm sure when Cabbies or the holding comapnies bought said medallion they were far far cheaper than they are today. I don't think Uber drivers should be forced to buy into a failing system-out with the old in with the new.
1
Lori, that isn't my understanding. Forex, the medallions in New York City have been pricey as long as I can remember.
Medallions do serve a purpose, preventing a city from being overrun by cabs. Of course, the system can then be abused if the city is forced to have too few cabs when demand increases, as it has been by the Parisian taxi drivers -- and that, perhaps, should be taken into account.
Medallions do serve a purpose, preventing a city from being overrun by cabs. Of course, the system can then be abused if the city is forced to have too few cabs when demand increases, as it has been by the Parisian taxi drivers -- and that, perhaps, should be taken into account.
Mindlessly resisting new technology is one of the reasons you find the smartest French people working in America and Britain.
3
Uber isn't a technology company. It's a taxi dispatcher.
Uber is just one tiny tip of the iceberg of sharing economies. Listen to Arun Sundararajan discussing disruptive change being effected by our on-denand service economy on On Point "Uber, But For Everything". Change is already here, like it or not. http://onpoint.wbur.org/2015/06/01/uber-for-everything-on-demand-economy
There is no such thing as a "sharing economy." Nobody is sharing anything. It's a business transaction. Words have meaning.
I love Uber and use it frequently in Los Angeles instead of my car. "Social Economy" has arrived to fight the corporations where greed has taken over and the people are fighting back. Hopefully Paris will join the Uber generation.
4
How nearsighted. Uber IS one of the corporations where greed has taken over.
"Social Economy"? Uber is a very large corporation - much larger than any taxi company. Like Amazon and other internet companies, Uber may provide good service at a good price. But don't kid yourself - these internet companies are making billions, often at the expense of lower tax revenue for local governments and the loss of middle class jobs. Driving a taxi is a hard job but offered a way for many immigrants to obtain a middle class life. Uber drivers make considerably less, especially when you take into account the depreciation of the value of the drivers car.
The internet economy may be great for consumers who have good jobs, but it has placed a large role in the widening income gap in this country.
The internet economy may be great for consumers who have good jobs, but it has placed a large role in the widening income gap in this country.
2
Not sure how true the "Eureka!" moment in Paris was as to the founding of Uber, as there's now a lawsuit:
http://fortune.com/2015/05/14/uber-lawsuit-stole/
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2015/05/startup-entrepreneur-sues-ube...
Even before Uber, there were already many taxi hailing apps. For instance, the #TAXI service that would connect you to local taxi service.
Regarding taxi availability in Europe, during my travels there I never had problems. Besides, any major city in Europe has excellent mass transit services.
Two anecdotes: in Berlin we were scheduled to take the EuroRail to Paris, but my travelling companion had read the time of departure wrong, and checking the ticket again saw that the train would be departing in about 10 minutes. We rushed to the nearest subway station, which would take about 5 minutes to the central train station, but after waiting 5 minutes still no train. So we walked backed to the street and hailed a taxi, and that driver rushed us to the train station, and we made it on the train with a minute to spare (nice thing about taxis in Germany, most of them are Mercedes). Then in Paris I was out at a bar late at night, and went to the subway to get back to my hostel, but found that service ends after midnight. Walked back to the street and hailed a taxi in a few minutes, no problem!
The problem with traveling in Europe isn't a lack of taxis, it's the lack of public bathrooms!
http://fortune.com/2015/05/14/uber-lawsuit-stole/
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2015/05/startup-entrepreneur-sues-ube...
Even before Uber, there were already many taxi hailing apps. For instance, the #TAXI service that would connect you to local taxi service.
Regarding taxi availability in Europe, during my travels there I never had problems. Besides, any major city in Europe has excellent mass transit services.
Two anecdotes: in Berlin we were scheduled to take the EuroRail to Paris, but my travelling companion had read the time of departure wrong, and checking the ticket again saw that the train would be departing in about 10 minutes. We rushed to the nearest subway station, which would take about 5 minutes to the central train station, but after waiting 5 minutes still no train. So we walked backed to the street and hailed a taxi, and that driver rushed us to the train station, and we made it on the train with a minute to spare (nice thing about taxis in Germany, most of them are Mercedes). Then in Paris I was out at a bar late at night, and went to the subway to get back to my hostel, but found that service ends after midnight. Walked back to the street and hailed a taxi in a few minutes, no problem!
The problem with traveling in Europe isn't a lack of taxis, it's the lack of public bathrooms!
11
Good for Paris!
Imagine a city run by laws and a concern for what's going on, rather than cowboy-capitalism run amok, shaving the edge of the law, and big money corporations--with their legal-defense 'strategies,' similar to Big Banks or organized crime ("Uber’s formidable defense machine. ... 'Stop me if you can' is Uber’s strategy.")
Imagine a city run by laws and a concern for what's going on, rather than cowboy-capitalism run amok, shaving the edge of the law, and big money corporations--with their legal-defense 'strategies,' similar to Big Banks or organized crime ("Uber’s formidable defense machine. ... 'Stop me if you can' is Uber’s strategy.")
18
And imagine a city where even modest efforts to bring needed increases to the number of taxis are repeatedly defeated by monopolist/unionist action, up to and including violence.
Please explain why Paris doesn't increase the number of cabs to a needed level, thus undercutting the need for Uber, etc.
Please explain why Paris doesn't increase the number of cabs to a needed level, thus undercutting the need for Uber, etc.
@nyer hahaha you obviously don't live in paris, like i do, where the cops themselves tow legally parked cars to up their quotas (it's happened to me twice), and the politicians are the most corrupt entity in the social landscape. google "patrick balcony," "thomas thévenoud" and "agnes saal" for just the latest round of fun.
Uber is another "sharing economy" parasite that has been permitted to skirt regulations that taxi companies have to abide by. Yes, taxi services in most metro areas leave a lot to be desired, but why shuold an upstart company not have to obey the same requirements that taxi companies do? Result? Taxi drivers displaced by casual drivers who are "sharing" their cars because this pathetic economy is "recovering" mostly with jobs that pay between $7-$13 per hour!
Uber's senior founders and investors exhibit massive hubris; they effectively "pay off" municipal officials with promises of boosting their local economies. Really?
Last, the final irony is Uber poaching Carnegie Mellon's Computer Science department to do research on driver-less cars - i.e. Uber is angling to replace the "sharing" drivers they currently contract for.
Anyone who supports this company is helping the 1% undercut a living wage.
That said, taxi regulations should either be loosened to let them compete on a level playing field, or Uber should be made to absorb the same fixed municipal costs that taxis do.
Uber's senior founders and investors exhibit massive hubris; they effectively "pay off" municipal officials with promises of boosting their local economies. Really?
Last, the final irony is Uber poaching Carnegie Mellon's Computer Science department to do research on driver-less cars - i.e. Uber is angling to replace the "sharing" drivers they currently contract for.
Anyone who supports this company is helping the 1% undercut a living wage.
That said, taxi regulations should either be loosened to let them compete on a level playing field, or Uber should be made to absorb the same fixed municipal costs that taxis do.
23
Driving a taxi is one of the very few jobs left in today's economy that cannot physically be offshored, and in Paris there's room for far more supply than the current regime chooses to permit. The government's appropriate role here is to set standards for consumer protection (make sure drivers are trained, safe, insured, and follow transparent pricing) and for driver protection (no below-market / exploitative / unsafe conditions). Protecting the interests of an entrenched minority is bad for total employment and bad for consumers. SO: while several posters here are correct in that Uber breaks the letter of the law, the fact is they are a force for positive social and economic change. The laws themselves need to adapt, even if it means French politicians need to buck the inevitable protests.
6
I am concerned about proof of insurance. How do I know the drivers have been vetted for current insurance, should I be hurt in an accident? Assuming Uber asks for proof at the outset of the contract, is there any follow-up?
7
How you you know whether a hailed taxi has insurance?
1
Uber provides third-party commercial insurance for all passenger trips. See http://newsroom.uber.com/2014/02/insurance-for-uberx-with-ridesharing/
1
They & Lyft are vigilant about insurance & auto inspection being up to date. If not, the driver's accounts are locked & they can't accept rides.
The pendulum seems to swing from one extreme to the other. A union protects its workers but then becomes greedy and populated by managers who milk the members and the employers. Taxis provide a necessary service in a professional way for a fair price but then deteriorate into arrogant. inconsiderate, unsafe monopolies. But I still feel safer and more secure with a regulated business model.
2
In Germany, Uber has run into the courts repeatedly. Their answer was basically to disregard the law and the verdict and continue on their path. This is not the behavior of a charming start up but that of a bullying multinational company which is above local law.
In Germany, cabs are constantly checked to make sure that the cars are safe, and similar safeguards are in place regarding the drivers. All of these things cost money, and Uber is trying to play the market without abiding by its rules. The only difference to the mafia is that the mafia knows that it is breaking the law and not trumpeting it out loud.
In Germany, cabs are constantly checked to make sure that the cars are safe, and similar safeguards are in place regarding the drivers. All of these things cost money, and Uber is trying to play the market without abiding by its rules. The only difference to the mafia is that the mafia knows that it is breaking the law and not trumpeting it out loud.
57
Ah, contemporary German socialism. How charming.
Can an Uber car be on the road if it hasn't been inspected recently, ditto the drivers? Like everything in Deutschland?
No? Well then.
Can an Uber car be on the road if it hasn't been inspected recently, ditto the drivers? Like everything in Deutschland?
No? Well then.
Comparing Uber to the Mafia is a blow below the belt. Uber pays taxes; its activity is not illegal. Uber can be made to make sure their cars are safe, and take similar safeguards regarding the drivers. But if Uber thrives, it is only because there is a market. It will be most successful in cities where the current taxi service is more chaotic, like Paris, and less so in other places, like London and some German cities. But to ban Uber is to foster a monopoly, and I thought most Western economies were against that.
It should come as no surprise to anyone who ever suffered the futility and humiliation of finding a taxi in Paris at night, that the whole concept of Uber was hatched there... In every city I visit I leave Uber as an absolute last resort after exhausting all other options, mainly because I'm uncomfortable with some of their practices. But in Paris, Uber is my first choice because, frankly, Parisian taxi drivers can go to hell! In which other major city/tourist destination do taxi drivers disappear after 9 pm?! That's right.. NOWHERE!!
49
I couldn't agree more. I am French Canadian and in Paris a lot. I was there once having a few drinks at Le Loco and had to walk from Pigalle to Bastille in the rain because the métro was closed and we couldn't find a cab. Another time my wife and I had to Vélib it from Passy to Bercy after the 14th of July fireworks, because the métro was closed we couldn't find a cab. Another time, and this takes the cake, I had to get to CDG for a flight home to Montréal from Place d'Italie. But all the taxi drivers had decided to go on strike that day, with no notice, because France had flamed out of the group stage at the 2002 World Cup. Arrrggggghhhhh. Bring on Uber. There is no legitimate reason to not support Uber unless you are a taxi driver (understandable) or a communist (gross, but again, understandable.)
If only they disappeared after 9pm... My experience pre-Uber has been many cab ride refusals by drivers not being happy with my destination.
Uber is making BILLIONs for it founders and stock owners, break most the local laws and pay it's "associates" pennies on the dollars.
It's time Uber slows down and play fair with it's competitions and workers.
It's time Uber slows down and play fair with it's competitions and workers.
39
Yet unlike most workers, Uber drivers show up when they want, go home when they want, and can choose which customers they serve. Uber gave them the means to work if they so choose, that's all. Compare that situation to most industries and maybe it's not so bad. You would think that cab companies would be lobbying the government to make it possible for them to follow suit, but it's the opposite! Because they do not WANT others competing with them on any terms. As an established institution, traditional cabs have pushed the costs of doing business through the roof where only they can afford to operate. The whole bit about unfair competition from their side is a distraction from much more threatening issues that can be summarized in three main points: (1) for the most part, traditional cabs (i.e., non-Uber) have been the only option available and that has become more evident now that there is a choice ; (2) Uber and Uber drivers provide transportation services that are demonstrably more responsive to consumer demand (and so provide, not just a choice, but a superior choice); and (3) these facts have many people (even their own drivers) questioning why they should continue to put up with a regulatory system captured by the cabs.
1
They pay their associates 80 pennies on the dollar, actually.
These services do create jobs; and are an alternative to taxis. I started using Lyft last year - what a great experience. The cars come in less than 10 minutes. The drivers are courteous, and you can tell who you are dealing with from the photo on the app. They are less expensive than taxis.
I am now using Lyft to get around when I don't have a car. I would never have thought of using a taxi for such a purpose, and would have relied on my husband instead. Plus, the payment is transacted automatically. Last week, we left a rock concert at midnight, surrounded by hundreds of people, and cars. Amazingly, we found a Lyft driver within 5 minutes!
I recommend these services to anyone. But I sure don't think that Uber is work $50 Billion.
I am now using Lyft to get around when I don't have a car. I would never have thought of using a taxi for such a purpose, and would have relied on my husband instead. Plus, the payment is transacted automatically. Last week, we left a rock concert at midnight, surrounded by hundreds of people, and cars. Amazingly, we found a Lyft driver within 5 minutes!
I recommend these services to anyone. But I sure don't think that Uber is work $50 Billion.
5
They are not creating jobs. They are just stealing jobs from taxi drivers. Why do people keep repeating the obvious nonsense about creating these jobs? It is exactly the people who already have these jobs that are protesting Uber and their ilk.
1
Say what you want about Uber, but, as a cab user in NY, I can finally get a car when it is raining. I waited 20 years for that to happen.
And, on the corner where I sometimes try to hail a cab, they will literally try to run me down rather than go uptown.
Not to mention how much cleaner Uber is.
And, on the corner where I sometimes try to hail a cab, they will literally try to run me down rather than go uptown.
Not to mention how much cleaner Uber is.
10
Cabs are "literally" trying to run you down? They aim for you?
I don't mind that Uber exists but the ridiculous criticisms of yellow cabs as a way to somehow make Uber look better is just over-the-top.
I don't mind that Uber exists but the ridiculous criticisms of yellow cabs as a way to somehow make Uber look better is just over-the-top.
I honestly don't understand. Cabs stop, ask you where you want to go and when you say "uptown" they literally try to run you down? If that happens do you call the police?
I have used Uber all over the world. It is a fantastic service according not only my experience as a customer, but also according what their drivers tell me, without exception.
Is it fair to medallion-owning or leasing taxi drivers? Of course not. They are victims of a grossly over-regulated marketplace in most cities with, in the case of Paris, their own additional market distorting efforts on the supply side.
Next, as Kalanick himself has maybe less than wisely pointed out, is entirely autonomous taxis or shared personal transportation, for which Uber would seem perfectly positioned. Or maybe not.
Is it fair to medallion-owning or leasing taxi drivers? Of course not. They are victims of a grossly over-regulated marketplace in most cities with, in the case of Paris, their own additional market distorting efforts on the supply side.
Next, as Kalanick himself has maybe less than wisely pointed out, is entirely autonomous taxis or shared personal transportation, for which Uber would seem perfectly positioned. Or maybe not.
3
You see, by French and NY Times logic, it doesn't matter that all the drivers love the service. and the customers too. We are all just wrong and misinformed and blind to the plight of workers...
Brave France!
11
You state that UberX is the equivalent of Uber Black in the US. That is incorrect. Uber Black is also available in France. The differences between the two options are the type of car, the services provided and of course the price.
Also, you mention that the current number of taxis has not evolved since "the Nazis invaded." Why not simply use a date (1939 for instance)? This story has nothing to do with World War II.
Also, you mention that the current number of taxis has not evolved since "the Nazis invaded." Why not simply use a date (1939 for instance)? This story has nothing to do with World War II.
4
I have such mixed feelings about Uber. Clearly, in many places there's a demand for better--in multiple senses of the word--taxi service. In Pittsburgh, where I live, I don't know anyone who ever even uses a taxi because the situation is so bad you usually can't get a taxi even if you want one. In many suburban and small town areas, it's even worse because there simply isn't any taxi service. Further, Uber provides job opportunities for people who either can't find anything else or who are willing to put in extra time at more than one job in order to raise their standard of living.
At the same time, Uber is quite clearly capable of exploiting its drivers and over time we may see it not being all that good a service for consumers either. What were those New Year's Eve fares again? And while we're talking about New Year's Eve, how many Uber drivers actually made much money because there were actually too many of them available?
How do we balance the positive possibilities of new technologies and the benefits they offer both workers and the public with the negative aspects that come along with such disruptive changes? Regulations are frequently heavy-handed and stifling but without them, exploitation and unwanted outcomes due to lack of regulation are also a distinct possibility.
At the same time, Uber is quite clearly capable of exploiting its drivers and over time we may see it not being all that good a service for consumers either. What were those New Year's Eve fares again? And while we're talking about New Year's Eve, how many Uber drivers actually made much money because there were actually too many of them available?
How do we balance the positive possibilities of new technologies and the benefits they offer both workers and the public with the negative aspects that come along with such disruptive changes? Regulations are frequently heavy-handed and stifling but without them, exploitation and unwanted outcomes due to lack of regulation are also a distinct possibility.
11
Next time you're in NYC, take a taxi and ask the driver if he feels used or exploited by cab cartel. Then take an Uber ride and ask the driver the same question. Anyone claiming that Uber somehow abuses drivers (you know, by giving them all the freedom they deserve and an efficient tool to hail fares) has either never spoken to a driver, or is a paid lobbyist for the taxi mafia.
1
For all those railing against a service like Uber, I want you to look into what makes cab services so expensive. Why does a 10 mile, 30 minute trip cost $30? Perhaps, it is all bureaucratic costs associated with owning and running a cab. In NYC, the cost of the license medallion alone can run into thousands of dollars.
6
Thousands? I bet a medallion goes for $250K these days.
Thousands? The average cost of a NYC taxi medallion has "fallen" to $840k (as of late 2014), down from it's 2013 high of $1.05 million (source NYT).
I have found Uber drivers to be unfailingly polite. They always have the air conditioning running on hot days and don't need to be asked to turn it on. And they come even when it's raining.
Yellow cab drives only have themselves to blame for lousy service. People want something better, and Uber offers it.
Yellow cab drives only have themselves to blame for lousy service. People want something better, and Uber offers it.
11
Because they pay nothing for a Medallion and are allowed to do virtual street hails. Let taxis do that and they'll drive a Lexus and hand you chocolates too.
They'd better be unfailingly polite or else they get a bad rating. Hardly seems genuine.
I live in Paris, come from New York and spend lots of time in both cities (and others where Uber has a presence). I don't think this article is accurate: UberX in Paris seems to me exactly the same as in New York: very nice cars, but not limos; Uber in Paris also has a "black" category that seems to me the same as the high end service in New York. I believe that Uber Pop is sharing.
I use Uber X a lot (in both cities), and think it's a life saver. Only occasional problem (especially in Paris and, even worse, in London): the drivers don't know their way around the city. I often use Waze and direct them.
I use Uber X a lot (in both cities), and think it's a life saver. Only occasional problem (especially in Paris and, even worse, in London): the drivers don't know their way around the city. I often use Waze and direct them.
2
Uber Pop is not sharing. Uber Pool is sharing.
I'm actually mystified why anyone would pay a 30% premium to be a passenger in a marginally nicer car for 10 minutes.
I'm actually mystified why anyone would pay a 30% premium to be a passenger in a marginally nicer car for 10 minutes.
I'm not sure that the French are so enamored of "disruptive innovation."
10
Every time I read about Uber I find myself disgusted by some of their tactics. In this article I find myself even more disgusted by the Paris taxi monopoly.
30
Another example of parasitic, self-serving, government bureaucrats doing "something" to try to justify their useless existence.
2
You mean "something" like enforcing the law?
1
Anyone who has ever struggled to hail a taxi in Paris, then been fortunate enough to snag one only to deal with horrid service, reckless driving and overcharging has zero trouble understanding why Uber has been so successful there. I'm all for protecting workers' rights, but they should have to do the job to a reasonable standard to deserve that protection. Even as I say this though, I am aware that it is a hopelessly, pointlessly American mindset.
86
It would never even occur to me to take a cab in Paris. The Metro/RER avoids the horrible street traffic and is much more efficient.
7
As I read this article, I was troubled by the words "job creation". Uber is not creating new jobs, they are parasites drawing off rides from existing drivers. The existence of Uber does not mean that more taxi rides will suddenly spring into existence, only that existing full-time drivers will be forced out. Unfair.
99
I guess giving drivers a choice of employer is a bad thing?
2
It's called market competition. Better product and better service (Uber, Lyft, ETC) Besides, why should we be forced to ride with often unruly, smelly and rude Cab services world wide when Uber and others present a better option? Free Choice reigns supreme. But you are still very welcome to go stand in the cab rank my friend! Might keep the surge pricing down a bit...
5
There aren't enough of them to get 'forced out'. Besides, if the service is so bad, don't they deserve to lose their jobs?
3
the increasing irrelevance of France and French to the global community as it attempts to keep itself a museum of the 19 and 20th centuries (for its Asian overlords) stands out here in their vain attempt to keep an expensive taxi monopoly relevant and legal. If Uber had French origins Paris would celebrate it but alas its American nativity piques the French pains at their loss of empire to their younger cousin.
29
Why such bile directed against France?
A beautiful country, with a high standard of living for its people, and a commitment to culture and history this country could do well to emulate.
And as for the "Asian overlords," perhaps you missed the Times recent series on the phantom overlords who own much of the $mega-millions real estate in NYC? ...and other US cities... and call the tune to many (most?) US corporations?
A beautiful country, with a high standard of living for its people, and a commitment to culture and history this country could do well to emulate.
And as for the "Asian overlords," perhaps you missed the Times recent series on the phantom overlords who own much of the $mega-millions real estate in NYC? ...and other US cities... and call the tune to many (most?) US corporations?
1
America isn't France's younger cousin, and the French empire was always hollow at its core. Despite America's faults, in the global economy and technology,along with culture, America is the teacher and France is the incompetent student.
1
You're right, freedom fries. The French don't even have a word for entrepreneur.
3
The simple reason France and other places have such a hard time fighting Uber is because consumers wish for Uber to continue operating. Period. A lot of people commenting on this particular story don't like hearing about the "market place," but cabs/taxis as an industry have given little thought to consumers over the years. At least in NYC, you have to pray there's one available at all, then compete with another ten people to get it to stop, and heaven help you if you need to go to *gasp* Brooklyn. Why would anyone deal with them unless they had no other option? Cities that want Uber to disappear would have more success in the long run if they gave their populations a serious, practical reason to use the cabs they seem to love so much.
As for the medallion owner in this article... it's amazing. I've never once ridden with a driver who actually OWNED a medallion. Every one of them I've met tells me stories of having to enter into short term leases with a medallion owner to drive their car. Additionally, most of the Uber drivers I've met are transplants from taxis who got sick of jumping through hoops.
As for the medallion owner in this article... it's amazing. I've never once ridden with a driver who actually OWNED a medallion. Every one of them I've met tells me stories of having to enter into short term leases with a medallion owner to drive their car. Additionally, most of the Uber drivers I've met are transplants from taxis who got sick of jumping through hoops.
73
They had a similar system to the Taxi Medallions in post-Civil War south: sharecropping. Rich person owns the land then leases farming rights to poor former slaves to do the work. How ironic (and stupid) that people here and in France complain about Uber and "workers rights", when in reality the medallion system is tantamount to economic slavery.
1
Ok, then allow Paris and NYC taxis to simply ignore most of the costs of doing business like Uber does. Problem solved.
To all the Uber Haters,
If you don't like them, don't use them. I personally feel way safer in an Uber because a) there is a record of who my drivers is and b) if they are a bad driver, I can give them a bad feedback.
If you don't believe that cabbies are dangerous drivers, tell me how the Nobel Prize winner, John Nash died. Here is the answer: "State Police said the Nashes were in a taxi traveling southbound in the left lane of the New Jersey Turnpike when Tarek Girgis lost control of his Ford Crown Victoria as he tried to pass a Chrysler in the center lane. The cab crashed into a guard rail near Interchange 8A in Monroe Township, ejecting the Nashes."
If you don't like them, don't use them. I personally feel way safer in an Uber because a) there is a record of who my drivers is and b) if they are a bad driver, I can give them a bad feedback.
If you don't believe that cabbies are dangerous drivers, tell me how the Nobel Prize winner, John Nash died. Here is the answer: "State Police said the Nashes were in a taxi traveling southbound in the left lane of the New Jersey Turnpike when Tarek Girgis lost control of his Ford Crown Victoria as he tried to pass a Chrysler in the center lane. The cab crashed into a guard rail near Interchange 8A in Monroe Township, ejecting the Nashes."
67
Right, no private car has EVER had an accident...
And you neglect the small (tragic) detail about the not wearing of seat-belts that made the deaths possible...
And you neglect the small (tragic) detail about the not wearing of seat-belts that made the deaths possible...
3
You get max points for irony here by using statistically insignificant anecdotal evidence related to a famous mathematician to try to prove a point.
2
What's your point? That no Uber driver has ever had an accident and never will? That's specious. It's no different than if I say: If you don't believe that Uber drivers are dangerous people tell me how this woman was raped:
http://www.chron.com/houston/article/Houston-Uber-driver-accused-of-rape...
http://www.chron.com/houston/article/Houston-Uber-driver-accused-of-rape...
1
France's ridiculous protectionist law only promotes status quo and laziness. And they wonder why unemployment and low productivity are so rampant.
38
The day that regulated taxi services with their million dollar taxi medallions that freeze out the free market can't come soon enough. It is not surprising that an backwards looking, ant-free market government like France wants to keep their hands in that honey pot for as long as they can.
11
How is Uber any better than the Mafia? Why are they so special as to be above any law, anywhere ? Why would you trust such an organization with a consistent pattern of law-breaking around the globe with your personal and financial information and ultimately, your life?
48
In reply to gk: How is Uber any better than the Mafia? Let's see, demand money from people without providing a service and threaten to kill them if they don't comply. That would describe the Mafia. You think Uber is no better than that? Make a serious argument and maybe someone will take you seriously.
To me, Uber is a mixed bag, some good and some bad. And many things they do that are considered illegal by some in government are not settled law.
To me, Uber is a mixed bag, some good and some bad. And many things they do that are considered illegal by some in government are not settled law.
2
Re GK's comment "How is Uber any better than the Mafia?"
hmm... they dont kill people?
and if you dont like Uber, you can go with the other mob, er taxi.
hmm... they dont kill people?
and if you dont like Uber, you can go with the other mob, er taxi.
1
Let me tell you how Uber is better than the mafia: they operate in the open, they don't charge fees for protection and they force no clients into using their service. Now, government sponsored cabs, set a high price and a monopoly and leave customers no other option. On top of it, the client is forced to watch a TVr screen in the cab with advertising that can't be shut off (just the sound, not the video) and the client is kidnapped to becoming an unwilling advertising consumer in the few moments of relaxation when using a cab. Also, they expect a minimum of 20% tip simply for doing their job.
1
More competition for services is ALWAYS better for the consumer, and therefore better for the economy and society as a whole. Just like in NYC, it's the rich investors who own the taxis (medallions) that are fueling the pushback. They don't care about their drivers. All they care about is keeping up the value of their investments. Why should anyone want to protect these people? They are using the government to give them monopoly power at the cost of the consumer.
31
Consumers are workers too, you know. There is not group of people who simply "consume" goods and services and another group that simply works to provide them. We are all one and the same. Ultimately if we are abused and exploited as workers, we won't be able to consume all that much in goods and services.
1
Sure, slave labor is also better for the 'consumers.' Why have any laws, whoever can break the most laws ignore the most regulations and undercut everyone else wins. Why not bring back slavery and child labor in the US. It would be awesome 'for the consumer.'
2
Uber ALREADY met its match in Seoul, S Korea.
5
Good for Uber. Hopefully they can make it prohibitively expensive for the Boers to harass the drivers through attrition. Just another example of how France's economic mindset is stuck in the 1970s.
17
1970s or 1870s?
1
A century ago, no doubt French authorities tried to force travelers to ignore automobiles and choose horse drawn carriages. Made no difference, nor will the attempt to harass Uber. There are many, many more potential Uber customers, than drivers (who care solely about the value of their medallions) in a taxi cartel that hasn't grown since WW2. On any other topic, NY Times readers are pro-democracy - the will of the majority governs. Why not on this issue?
21
Oops. Did you notice that the word "automobile" has a French sound to it? That's right; it's a French word. While the Germans originated many of the raw mechanical inventions that make up an automobile it's the French who embraced it first. Who fought against the automobile at that time? The British. They imposed stringent speed limits, only "relaxing" the limit to 20 mph in 1903 and retaining that limit until 1930.
The last two taxi drivers I had in Paris were (a) a reckless North African immigrant who narrowly avoided multiple collisons with other vehicles and (b) an extremely angry woman who was choked with fury the entire ride. After that, my wife and I took only public transportion.
If these two individuals are indicative of the general mine run of licensed taxi drivers in Paris, I can see why Uber is proving popular in the City of Light.
If these two individuals are indicative of the general mine run of licensed taxi drivers in Paris, I can see why Uber is proving popular in the City of Light.
62
Uberdoes not use human drivers?
I have the same experience. For some reason licensed taxi drivers are angry. Why the job of licensed taxi driver seems to self select for angry people is something that confuses me. Maybe it is that so few taxi drivers own the taxi. What must it be like to have rich people own the taxi and you drive for peanuts? My Uber experience is that driver are the most adorable and helpful taxi drivers I have ever met. Maybe these sharing/rating systems like Uber allow those people who love to do the job get the job. The drivers seem to be people who like people. The Uber drivers I have met genuinely seem to like driving and taking care of me. In New York, one billion dollar company owns most of the taxi medallions. Of course the licensed drivers are angry. They are serfs. The biggest question is ... Doesn't anyone care about the consumer? Why do these sharing/rating systems like Uber become so popular? Other than paid lobbyists who supports these archaic licensing systems?
2
Uber has access to 1.5billion in capital, so guess what, it doesn't have to play by the rules. Uber will never allow for unionization for it's drivers, and it will dump them in a second when the self-driving cars come around. When we allow 'unbridled capitalism' to set the rules, labor is exploited and the idea of 'general welfare' is forgotten. VIVE la FRANCE for not buying into it!
120
Good point, uber driver are replaceable as soon as self drive cars is here.
Time to slow down uber now before they race us to the bottom.
Time to slow down uber now before they race us to the bottom.
Oui Oui! Here's to expensive, overpriced service in dangerous cars! Thank you France!
2
I will never take Uber because they rate their customers. I don't need the stress of being rated, especially when I'm footing the bill. The gall.
106
Ebay let's buyers and sellers rate one another. This protects the drivers from abusive jerks, which must be a problem in the industry, as every cabbie I've ever talked to had a gun.
2
I hope you don't use the Open Table application for reservations, considering how much you hate being rated...
1
I'm curious about one thing, which may not be peculiar to Uber. How do you know that the ratings that are posted are legitimate in any way? How do you know that they're not invented by the Uber company (the ubermenschen?) and have no basis in fact? Love them or hate them, there's no question that the company is pretty contemptuous of rules that it doesn't like.
1
Uber is transformational, but like all vested interests who face a challenge to the order that has supported them for so long, the fight can be hard. France desperately needs jobs, innovation and a new way of thinking. Instead the government works hand over fist to smash the very innovation it needs.
Basic regulations - insurance, a basic proven competence and identity check should be enough. If people want to work as drivers and Uber is prepared to organise them, let it happen. The rest either bend ad work with it or they fail and things change. this is so much about what is wrong with so much of Europe. Excessive protection for people who don't deserve it any more and more to the point won't work for it. Those who want to suffer.
Basic regulations - insurance, a basic proven competence and identity check should be enough. If people want to work as drivers and Uber is prepared to organise them, let it happen. The rest either bend ad work with it or they fail and things change. this is so much about what is wrong with so much of Europe. Excessive protection for people who don't deserve it any more and more to the point won't work for it. Those who want to suffer.
11
Your 'basic regulations' are not being met in this case. Auto insurance for a vehicle used for business purposes is different than a vehicle used purely for personal use. Drivers licenses for driving a vehicle for hire have different requirements than a standard drivers license.
5
LOL, it is already an academic FACT that Uber DOESNT background check all of it's drivers, they have ZERO actual insurance since their own TOS invalidates what they advertise as insurance and they do zero road testing with their drivers. THEY DON'T EVEN REQUITE THAT THE DRIVERS PUT CAMS in the vehicles. That isn't innovation at all.
Uber doesn't compete fairly.
79
Uber is a criminal enterprise that doesn't operate legally or fairly. that has BILLIONS and yet tries to evade same payments that taxicabs make while competing in exactly same industry. This is outrageous and deserves no respect.
136
The taxi industry is a crooked cartel that has provided bad service, overcharged customers, and reckless drivers (I have never feared for my life more than in the back of a cab with some guy barrelling down the road while chatting on the phone).
51
How long you been driving a cab?
1
Said the taxi driver. As far as I know, Uber is not killing the customers, just offers a better and cheaper service, so the word criminal only applies to killing the cab's monopoly but consumers couldn't care less.
1
The french way of dealing with taxis (and most other industries) seems embarrassingly, hopelessly backward.
46
Yes, let's have the French surrender workers' rights en mass as the U.S. has done. Maybe if the French only had two weeks of vacation there'd be enough Parisian taxis for everyone.
26
Thanks for reminding us that coopers, candlestick makers and farriers have very strong unions. It's just that their industries no longer exist.
2
Nothing shows the cravenness and stupidity of the state quite like public efforts to curtail the development and expansion of an Uber, or an Amazon, companies that seem to suit both their clients and the people who work for them.
59
Non, c'est les français qui est stupid. They permit le CGT, CFDT et les autres trois with a combined membership totaling a mere 8% of the working population to exercise an outsize influence on politics and policy.
1
Which laws does Amazon break. and which regulations do they simply ignore? The list is very long for Uber.
Vive la France!
For this, for health care and for taking a tougher stance than the US against Iran.
For this, for health care and for taking a tougher stance than the US against Iran.
68
You've got to be kidding. Yeah for healthcare, boo everything else. Cabs in France need some competition.
1
Cabs in france have insurance. Uber invalidates their own coverage the second you his 'agree'.. If you are too dumb to READ a TOS agreement though, you should be getting into an Uber.
All of Uber's statements are Orwellian. Case in point: 'demands of the marketplace.' When you break laws and avoid regulations to gain advantage and undercut legitimate business, it no longer qualifies as free market supply and demand.
148
What if the laws and regulations protect an inefficient, costlier status quo and keep out competitors?
Technology is today's water flowing downhill - it finds the weakest place to flow, and erodes it until the landscape has been completely changed and re-defined. Sovereign power may now be a lot of boulders in that stream - my guess is that pretty soon they will just be rocks.
Technology is today's water flowing downhill - it finds the weakest place to flow, and erodes it until the landscape has been completely changed and re-defined. Sovereign power may now be a lot of boulders in that stream - my guess is that pretty soon they will just be rocks.
13
"What if the laws and regulations protect an inefficient, costlier status quo and keep out competitors?"
Then change the laws.
Then change the laws.
11
Doesn't that depend on whether the laws and regulations are aimed at maintaining a monopolistic provider rather than providing better service to the market of consumers? Which laws and regulations are you referring to, and how do the serve consumers, who overwhelming seem to disdain the taxi monopolies and prefer the convenience and efficiency that Uber offers? Laws and regulations that are aimed at maintaining a monopoly clearly do not serve a free market based economy.
4
"You might halt individual transactions, but you can’t control the demands of the marketplace."
In America a factor in choosing the size of a punishment is whether it will change behavior: BNP? 10 billion dollars. Banks' manipulation of Libor? More billions. If Europeans could do the same for Uber, choosing a fine in the billions rather than the teeny tiny fines that are currently used, behavior would change. And quickly. A much larger fine is certainly appropriate for the ilks of a company which so willingly breaks the law.
In America a factor in choosing the size of a punishment is whether it will change behavior: BNP? 10 billion dollars. Banks' manipulation of Libor? More billions. If Europeans could do the same for Uber, choosing a fine in the billions rather than the teeny tiny fines that are currently used, behavior would change. And quickly. A much larger fine is certainly appropriate for the ilks of a company which so willingly breaks the law.
27
A larger fine would certainly be dissuasive, as would a court system that could handle the ensuing litigation (ahem!). But I have noticed that France has a way of tolerating illegal behavior, like hiring undocumented workers, like working off the books, like street vending - and now, driving for Uber, despite the showy "Boer" force. They do this to avoid another revolution and to allow modest hardworking people a chance to "put butter in their spinach", or improve their living standard a little. France has a law for everything, including fines for spitting in the metro and rules for who gets to decide whether the windows in a bus will be closed or open. At the same time, they know the political limits of repressing ingenuity. Uber is there to stay.
5
Admittedly, I'm not from France. At the same time, the criminals you mentioned did something that the majority of people found abhorrent (manipulating currencies, etc.). The reason Uber thrives are evident in the article. People at large are sick of dealing with cabs. Given the first opportunity they'd rather deal with Uber (even when sanctioned). That is a bigger endorsement of the company than anything else. The law is the law, but as France has demonstrated quite violently in its history, once people are fed up with a situation, no amount of tradition or bureaucracy is going to stem the tide. The traditional cabs have generally lost their customers' good will by providing subpar service. Uber has stepped into that gap and is reaping the benefits. The solution is not to return to the old frustrating way of doing things, but to change the laws to reflect reality.
27
The article mentions the needs of many — but fails to interview any French customers. Based on my experience riding normal Parisian taxis, I find Ubers to be cleaner, more convenient, and the drivers more professional. They are also much easier to get no matter what time it is, whilst normal taxis are extremely hard to hail especially late in the evening. Furthermore, there is no exchange of money, and you can trust that the shortest and fastest route will be taken.
For a teenage boy, Uber is perfect. I can share my location with my parents so that they know where I am, who my driver is, and when I’ll get home. I feel that Uber has fulfilled a need that has been long unmet in the Parisian marketplace.