Barry Ritholtz, Columnist

Taxi Cab Owners and Regulators Created Uber

The number of cars for hire didn’t rise with demand. What would you expect?

May 4, 2018 at 6:45 PM UTC

Barry Ritholtz is a former Bloomberg Opinion columnist. He is chairman and chief investment officer of Ritholtz Wealth Management, and was previously chief market strategist at Maxim Group. He is the author of “Bailout Nation.”

You can be sure it’s taken.
Photographer: Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis News/Getty Iamges

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On this day May 4, 2011, Uber NYC launched. It filled an enormous, artificial void that was created by the Taxi and Limousine Commission at the behest of the Yellow Cab medallion owners.

In New York, Uber has been thrust back into the news after several Yellow Cab driver suicides (read this or listen to this) and indebtedness and families of survivors are blaming the stress of competing with smartphone ride-hailing services. The New York City Council is looking to limit or perhaps even reverse the expansion of app-based rides.