The United States taxi and limo industry employs nearly 240,000 drivers. This begs the question, why are consumers unable to locate a car when they need it? One answer to this question is that supply is limited. Many cities permit a fixed amount of medallions to transportation vehicles and cities regulate the fairs of such cars, practices thought to ensure at the very least a minimum vehicle and driver standard in addition to income for owners of these medallions and the cities in which they are issued. Even if you're willing to pay more for a limo service, it generally must be arranged far in advance and limousines typically can't be hailed legally on the street. However, can you legally hail them on your smartphone by virtual means? …show more content…
Uber doesn't directly employ drivers or purchase their cars. The company has founded a successful branded car service upon this foundation. The company's app connects passengers to drivers, who are located near them, calculates fares employing its algorithms, and charges consumers credit cards directly for the service. They subsequently e-mail the customer a receipt. No cash ever actually changes hands, no tipping is allowed, and both drivers and passengers can rate each other through the app. This service has quickly flourished in untapped markets.
Uber has now launched UberX, which competes against discount-priced competitors, such as Lyft, and is in direct competition with taxicabs. UberX allows smaller vehicles and employs drivers who aren't commercially licensed. Taxi representing trade groups have balked, saying that the company lacks appropriate screening and training for drivers, endangers the safety of its customers and generates unfair market competition. City governments continue to debated limits to car amounts that ride-sharing companies are permitted to put on the road. For instance, Seattle settled on 150 being