‘Taxi Kingpin’ in massive debt thanks to Uber

NY Post ^ | 3/17/15 | By Julia Marsh and Danika Fears

[GrandJediMasterYoda]

‘Taxi Kingpin’ in massive debt thanks to Uber

The city’s “Taxi Kingpin’’ is having trouble hacking it as he battles mounds of debt — thanks to Uber. Gene Freidman, who owns more than 900 city cab medallions, has been hit so hard by the car-hailing app that he can’t meet his bills — and Citibank is now foreclosing on at least 90 of his medallions to recoup what he owes, court records and sources say. “Gene Freidman’s business model requires him to lease out hundreds of cars every day, and because he can’t find drivers because of Uber, [it] means he’s not making money,” an industry source told The Post.

[GrandJediMasterYoda]

This is a perfect example of the kind of corruption that runs in the liberal/RINO controlled cesspool of New York city. A few years ago the fascist dictator Mayor Mike Bloomberg said to this guys face he was going to destroy him because this guy refused to buy into the global warming financial scam by buying a bunch of useless electric taxis. Bloomberg then became infuriated and told him to his face he was going to destroy him by increasing his competition, and gee whiz wouldn't you know it. That's exactly what he did. See for yourself........

http://nypost.com/2013/05/22/mike-unleashes-a-hail-storm/

[Flick Lives]

Wouldn’t surprise me. Cross an elite like Bloomberg and bad things could happen. Elites don’t just think they run the world; they do run the world.

[Junk Silver]

Yes, this shows the corruption of NYC’s Progressive power base.

It also shows the dangers of using rent-seeking to build up a profitable monopoly. For years New York’s politicians structured taxi regulations so as to make those medalions into virtual licenses to print money. All of this was funded by anyone who had to pay for a cab ride in a non-competitive environment.

I have a hard time being too broken up about the Taxi Kingpin’s woes.

[Mr. K]

if he was smart he would dump all his ‘medallions’ and convert all his drivers to uber drivers

[G Larry]

This must really upset the Mob.

[Mr. K]

doesn’t it cost something like $5,000 to get a ‘medallion’ (which is basically a permit to let you conduct business as a cab driver) PER CAR?

I wonder if that is per year too?

[bigdaddy45]

huh... what? Are you arguing that competition is bad?? This guy is going broke because the taxi monopoly just got some high tech competition, and can’t hack it. Thats a good thing, not a bad thing.

[GrandJediMasterYoda]

He should move like I did a few years ago. That city is joke when it comes to corruption. This is why the current Despot Duh Blasio was trying to get rid of the horse and carriages in Central Park so his buddy could replace them with electric carriages.

[baltimorepoet]

Its a shame there aren’t more people with Chris Kyle’s skillset with elitists like Bloomberg or Soros in their sights...

Just saying, its a shame.

[St_Thomas_Aquinas]

-— It also shows the dangers of using rent-seeking to build up a profitable monopoly. -—

True. But usually the cronies make a quick kill, making so much profit that they can afford to close down. See Solyndra, etc.

[Carriage Hill]

I thought a taxi medallion was over $1m?

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/03/upshot/new-york-taxi-medallion-prices-fall-again.html?_r=0

[txrefugee]

Good. Maybe thousands of foreigner taxi drivers will go back home. Uber is far superior to the service they offer.

[SoCal Pubbie]

Corporate or “mini-fleet” medallions, the type this guy must have, since it’s the one that allows you to operate more than one cab, cost an average price of $987,500 in 2014. An individual New York taxi medallion fell to $840,000 last year, down 20 percent from its peak of $1.05 million in June 2013.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/03/upshot/new-york-taxi-medallion-prices-fall-again.html?_r=0

[kevkrom]

In other (older) news: Buggy Whip Magnate Ruined by Ford’s “Horseless Carriage”

[pieceofthepuzzle]

Is it possible for someone to hack into Uber, and pick up someone for reasons other than giving them a ride? This kind of stuff worries me.

[TexasGator]

“doesn’t it cost something like $5,000 to get a ‘medallion’ “

Uh, read the article.

[petercooper]

Bring in some competition and watch prices fall. Amazing how that works. These unfortunate taxi owners thought they had a monopoly. No more. Watch that medallion price to continue to fall.

[BullDog108]

Uber is fantastic. I use it all the time in Spokane. The fares are much cheaper, and I order one up with my iPhone. The cars are much cleaner and the drivers are not tweakers and meth dealers like the Yellow Cab franchise.

[bray]

Which is why cities are trying to outlaw Uber.

Pray America is waking

[rpierce]

For freepers who would like some background on the Uber debate see this: Yes, Uber Sucks, And Let Me Explain Why, an informative article from the perspective of an intelligent, independent taxi driver.

Also, He's a very entertaining writer and you'll find yourself hooked on his real world anectdotes. His essay The Pig Trap should be required reading for every son of liberty.