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VILLAIN OR BOGEYMAN? NEW YORK'S TAXI MEDALLION SYSTEM
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1996
Year
New YorkService IssuesSocial SciencesBureaucracyService QualityUrban HistoryTax PolicyPublic PolicyEconomicsUrban InfrastructureUrban PlanningTax AvoidanceKey PolicyPublic TransportPublic EconomicsUrban EconomicsBusinessUrban Public ServiceMobility Service
This is the second of a three-part series examining key policy and service issues in the New York City taxicab industry. The first paper found that deficiencies with taxi service stem from inadequate driver wages and difficult working conditions. Building on this key finding, this paper evaluates the widespread notion that the medallion system, under which the number of licensed taxicabs has not increased in over 50 years, is to blame for poor driver wages, difficult working conditions and problems with service quality. Critics of the medallion system urge that competition in the form of additional cabs be let loose to spur better service. The analysis here finds that the growth of taxicab leasing over the last 15 years has had a far more pernicious effect on service quality than has the medallion system.