After their failed attempt to strap onerous and possibly
illegal anti-competitive regulations on Transportation Network Companies (TNCs)
like Uber and Lyft that would have essentially run TNCs out of Kenner, Kenner
Mayor Ben Zahn and District 2 Councilman Mike Sigur have disclosed their new
strategy. If they can’t regulate Uber and Lyft out of Kenner, they can
unregulate the Taxi industry.
Admittedly, the Taxi industry and taxi drivers in Kenner
have had to work under some ridiculous rules, an annual health screening for drivers and
other rules that have little to do with the driver or passenger safety, but to
completely unregulate the taxi industry is also ridiculous.
And, again, it has nothing to do with public safety or the
best interests of consumers which should be the paramount goal of a Mayor and a
City Council.
It’s all about favoring local companies versus non-locals
and trying to decide who wins and who loses.
Set rates from Armstrong International Airport are in place
to prevent price-gouging by the Taxi industry. On the surface, deregulating
prices appears to be a good thing and should result in lower fares as the Taxi
industry attempts to be more competitive with Uber and Lyft.
But, what if it has the opposite effect and prices rise
significantly, irritating locals and visitors alike?
One of the biggest complaints about TNCs, particularly Uber,
is “surge” or “dynamic” pricing. Essentially, when there is a “surge” in the
amount of customers trying to book an Uber, the company puts out a call to its
drivers offering them more money, in the form of higher fares, to get on the
road and accommodate the increased usage.
This can result in nightmarishly high fees.
A trip that may have cost $10 to get somewhere can now go
for as much as $300 or more to get back home. Uber implements “surge” pricing automatically
and any event can trigger it, from a concert to a disaster like Hurricane
Katrina to the London terror attacks last week.
While London taxi drivers were giving folks free rides so
they could get home safely after other forms of public transportation were
suspended, Uber’s computer algorithms triggered surge pricing resulting in
numerous complaints.
Uber has announced that they will be offering refunds to
affected London passengers which helps now but, does little to remedy the
situation, or someone’s wallet, at the time.
“Surge” pricing at Armstrong could be an issue and, rather
than allow Uber to utilize “surge” pricing and simultaneously remove
fixed-price taxi fares from Armstrong, Kenner should opt to keep the
price-fixed fares but as a maximum fee that can be readjusted annually. This
would protect consumers while still allowing the free market to set standard
fees.
As I’ve discussed for months now, since Zahn, Sigur, Council
President Lenny Cline and other members of the Kenner City Council were so
focused on regulating TNCs (while benefiting the local Taxi industry), they
have completely ignored consumers and public safety.
"We've got to find that (regulatory) balance," Sigur
told Nola.com.
Perhaps if you would think about what is best for
your constituents, the majority of your constituents anyway, and focus on
public safety instead of trying to decide winners and losers, the task wouldn’t
be so difficult Mr. Sigur.
If you, Lyin’ Ben and Stumblebum Lenny had started
there Mr. Sigur, it wouldn’t have taken you over a year to get where you are
now.
And the three of you wouldn't have embarrassed Kenner in the process.
