Posted on 10/26/2015 8:09:33 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Uber is crushing the taxi industry that has dominated New York City — and other cities — for so many years.
Data from the Taxi and Limousine Commission analyzed by the New York Daily News shows total trips in the first half of 2015 were down 10 percent to 77 million, compared to same period last year. Revenues from yellow cab fares have declined as well. And in July, there were 100,000 Uber trips in New York City per day, a 4x increase from last summer.
It's hard for taxis to compete with Uber, the ubiquitous car-hailing service said to be raising an additional $1 billion round of funding at a $60 to $70 billion valuation.
But a new startup called Karhoo is hoping to give taxi drivers in several cities a leg up.
Karhoo, a 10-month-old startup that won't launch until January 2016, has raised a $250 million round of funding, with plans to raise more than $1 billion in capital. Karhoo works with licensed taxi companies to let you hitch a ride from any number of taxi services, the FT reports.
In New York City, Karhoo is working with for-hire vehicle companies like Dial 7 and Carmel. In the UK, it's partnering up with minicab company Addison Lee. Karhoo will launch in three cities in January: New York, London, and Singapore.
Its investors so far include Nick Gatfield, the former CEO of Sony Music Entertainment, and David Kowitz, the cofounder of hedge fund Indus Capital Partners.
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
It’s not the taxi industry that needs to adapt, it’s the cities and their fee structure.
The license to drive a cab - the medallion - is super-expensive.
They have, but by very small numbers -- not enough to significantly increase the supply of taxis in service and increase competition.
Uber and similar services are benefiting both drivers and passengers by undermining the taxi cartel.
Um, the Obama economy also sucks and has his whole freaking term. The money pumping is just inevitably losing effect.
The only reason Uber will be targeted by state gov'ts is the revenue from taxi licensing. That's a good job for the Democrats, the party of the single party state, which is always on the lookout for ways to attract younger, inexperienced demographics.
what happens to uber when taxi companies have a fleet of self driving cars?
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