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Uber: Going, going, gone? |
So terrible, in fact, that many people prefer it over taxis because of Uber's nicer cars, friendlier drivers, greater control and more convenience. So terrible, that taxi drivers and companies are fearing for their carreers.
Is the solution to improve taxi service? Perhaps not. Instead, the government - undoubtedly pressured by the traditional taxi industry - is working on a law intended to legislate Uber out of existence.
The proposed law, which has yet to be reviewed, would require drivers from Uber, Cabify and other
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Back to the future of old taxis? |
All of these unreasonable, unrealistic requirements are for an industry - the gig economy on wheels - which has been operating pretty well on its own.
Anti-Uber marchers compare the company to a proveer of prostitutes. |
'Uber out of Colombia.' |
An Uber marketing stand. |
None of which is to say that ride-sharing platforms don't produce negative impacts, particularly by increasing traffic congestion and pollution. But those are not just the fault of Uber, and should be addressed with a traffic congestion charge, pollution sanctions and other measures.
Incidentally, Colombian tourist guides are threatened by simlarly unreasonable ertification requirements designed to create barriers to entry and protect the interests of a small number of guides who were grandfathered into the industry and often do not even speak the languages needed to do the work.
Professional certifications like these are generally required for professions which involve big risks, such as medicine and engineering, or require intense knowledge, such as law. But driving a car? Telling tourists where Bogotá was founded?
These 'training laws' are really disguised barriers to competitors and attempts to monopolize their industries.
By Mike Ceaser, of Bogotá Bike Tours,
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