Uber, the popular app-driven black car service that has been a controversial addition to the traffic landscape in Miami-Dade, has been booted from Broward County as of last week.
And Uber drivers are getting citations in Key West — where at least one driver was arrested for driving without a license.
And where do you think these drivers are fleeing to?
To Miami-Dade, of course, where the outlaw company, which operates outside the regulations imposed on taxi cabs and limousine drivers — and apparently without the background checks that these drivers must pass — still feels welcome. So welcome, in fact, that Uber is opening a headquarters office in Brickell and recruiting 10,000 more drivers.
Why all the success in the 305? What’s the difference? At least 18 lobbyists between the two companies — including many of those who run the mayor’s kitchen cabinet — and an administration and county commission who have, apparently, created a double standard and look the other way as rules are broken.
Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez is a fan of the service. He has admitted that he uses Uber when he
travels outside Miami-Dade, even though he has publicly admitted that they operate illegally. So has Commissioner Esteban Bovo, who wrote an editorial in April on his efforts to “legalize” the service — but without much of the regulation that the taxis must be submitted to.
Bovo’s legislation — which taxi owners all the “Santa Clause ordinance” — was tabled after he saw he didn’t have the votes, but he is trying again.
Meanwhile, the administration apparently instructs the county’s consumer services and code enforcement departments not to enforce the existing regulations already there for what Miami-Dade calls “for hire transportation,” which obviously includes these ride sharing services that have been operating illegally for more than a year. Both Uber and Lyft got a total of 2,500 citations last year and at least three cars were impounded. Lyft lobbyist Jorge Luis Lopez called it the cost of doing business. But there’s been no real enforcement since then.
Read related story: Lobbyist Jorge Luis Lopez — civic leader? Or rogue scofflaw?
Taxi drivers are in an uproar. They are losing customers — especially millennials — to this high-tech, mobile-friendly alternative.
But the reason Uber is gaining a foothold in Miami-Dade is not because their cars are cleaner or smell nicer than cabs. It’s not because their drivers are more polite or informed about Miami — in fact, Ladra has seen 
quite the opposite.
No, Uber is doing well simply because it’s easier and cheaper. A ride to Miami Beach from Coral Gables will cost $20 — during off peak times, that is — while a taxi cab charges a flat rate of $35. Demand, however, drives the prices up in what Uber calls “surge pricing” — a new, fancy term for price gouging — and it can cost you four times as much to get home as it cost to get to the Miami Heat game from Kendall.
And how do they undercut the taxi cabs and limousines. By operating outside the rules that govern “for-hire vehicles”:
- Uber drivers do not have to have commercial insurance. Most drive with just PIP and liability
- Uber cars do not need to go through quarterly inspections every three months to ensure that their vehicles are in good condition
- Uber drivers do not have to have a chauffeur’s license.
- Uber drivers do not have to undergo a county background check. There have been multiple rapes and sexual assaults reported across the country and , last month, an Isis-loving Uber driver was arrested after the FBI uncovered his terrorist plot.
- Uber drivers do not have to pay the county $2-$5 like taxis and limousines do every time they pick up a passenger at the airport — and they are’n’t supposed to pick up fares at the airport, but they’re outlaws and do whatever they want.
Gimenez and other Uber enthusiasts argue that competition is good for both
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How does Discrimination Works !
2271 Taxis, 149 Permitted PMC Total # of Vehicles 949
STS Unknown Mustily own by Taxi Owners and Limo #616
,
Why ? The limos Had been Discriminated , No lottery since 2008, And Why Because Joe Mora Assistance Director of RER and The Taxi Control Division Did Not Want To ! The Taxis Where The Oppressors and Now Uber is The Oppressor.
So if You Paid $20,000 Dollars I hope You Got Your money Back already. because the people who pay $400,000 they just took a great Gamble And Lost !
[…] Read related story: Double standard: Miami-Dade lets Lyft, Uber run over the rules […]
Uber and Lyft are very wasteful uses of the public roadways, and will contribute nothing to our need to get many more vehicles and the people in them off the roads. The policy problem is: the taxi industry is even worse.
One set of regulations that should apply to all public transport involves appropriate prohibitions against discrimination.
Now that I have had time to read the responses in full, I want to state that I agree entirely with Steve Cody’s analysis.
Xavier
Ladra,
You’re missing 1 major point… The reason there are so many regulations on the Taxi industry is because the industry wanted it that way. 3 guys, as schooled in Miami-Dade Politics as anyone you will ever meet, going back 50 years, have created this “regulatory structure” so that they could monopolize the market. They did it to keep others out. They drove up the market for the medallions by insuring that there would always be too few medallions. There should be at least 5,000 medallions to serve our population, but noooo, there’s only 2,100. 3 entities own over 85% of the medallions and the drivers are modern day indentured servants, paying these 3 guys $500 to $600 per week just for the right to drive the car (medallion).
Every time anyone wants to push any innovation, or vehicle standards on the taxis, these guys cry like babies and claim that they just can’t do it.
Well guess what? The times they are a changin’ It’s not government’s business to protect an industry (read MONOPOLY) that has refused elevate their game.
I agree that competition is good and I am glad to have a choice when it comes to hitching a ride. I want Uber and Lyft to stay.
But they should be regulated a little bit and taxis should be regulated less. The main problem here is inequity, not that Uber and Lyft are necessarily bad. Just that they have an unfair advantage that is not driven by their business model. It is driven by government inequity. Separate is not equal.
The county should vet all drivers and if taxi drivers have to pay $55 a year for their county license, so should Uber drivers. If taxis have to be inspected (at $38 a pop), so should Uber and Lyft vehicles.
I agree that the $2 fare fee at MIA could continue, but the millions there should be diverted from the aviation department to the department of regulation and consumer services, so that they can increase enforcement of the thousands more cars that are flooding the market.
And don’t get me started on the medallions, which is a whole ‘nother subject that I am following up on because it basically amounts to extortion. There are unlimited number of Uber cars in the county but only 2,121 medallions, which go for an average $400,000 EACH. Not total, as I had erred in the story (since fixed). I believe the county may find itself in a situation where they will have to pay those monies (more than $2 million just for 2012) back.
There has to be a way for all the services to co-exist — and the only way for that to happen is for government to treat them equally.
Love, Ladra
The taxis in Miami are disgusting and on good days, the drivers are merely rude. Uber is the best thing to happen to the taxi industry, period. Maybe they will straighten out their game or disappear.
Dear Honorable Ms DeValle:
You delve into subjects which are beyond my courage or competence, so please allow me to apologize for wanting to help you on one of my few expertises in life.
I drive taxis, all-in-all, 23 full-time years. (My father 15 full-time years before me.) I’ve driven Uber now almost 1 year.
How many taxis or Ubers have you ridden in in the past six months?
Please try both.
I submit you will find taxi service is undependable, unprofessional, and rude (if not larcenous, deliberately taking a longer route than appropriate).
By contrast, I submit you will finf Uber and Lyft to be dependable, professional, polite, and half the price of taxis.
Ms DeValle, you know me.
I wouldn’t lie to you.
My 24 years of experience as a taxi driver, limousine driver, and now Uber/Lyft driver, tell me taxis are evil, and uber/Lyft are good.
Sincerely,
Jackson Rip Holmes
305-338-5000
Mr. Rip Holmes;
You are enjoying the red carpet and the beautiful scenario placed by the evil UBER at the main entrance of the Death Valley of the UBER system, in which you have just stepped in; wait till you face the horror story’s of the UBER drivers being painfully told in the following link by the UBER drivers who have been driving for UBER since its inception:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDeLO1Yr-pk
Old and wise say the best form of learning is to learn from the experience of the others, and after watching what is happening to these UBER drivers, if you still won’t get the picture, then it will not be too long when you will become from Rip Holmes to “RIP” only.
Mr. Rip Holmes,
24 years driving taxi are a lot of years and you can only do it if you really loved it. Based upon my years of experience driving a taxi, I can tell you that you either acquired a criminal record that prevents you from getting the Chauffer’s license resulting in preventing you from driving a taxi or you have had too many accidents or several tickets therefore, the insurance company Ascendent and the Yellow cab of Miami refused to provide you the insurance coverage by marking you as a dangerous driver. Therefore, the only option now you are left to continue working as a For-Hire driver is to drive for UBER, which happily hires all the criminal, and dangerous drivers. Otherwise I don’t see why will you be so delighted to work like a slave for UBER where the majority of UBER drivers earn way less than Florida min wage of $8.05/hr. To prove this point check out the one of Miami UBER driver, who painfully explains in great detail that he earned around $4.32/hr driving for UBER in Miami, which in my opinion is equivalent to slavery, and which you can see in the following link:
https://pando.com/2015/01/26/dear-travis-a-miami-uber-driver-takes-exception-to-the-companys-rate-cuts/
That’s why I say all UBER has to offer to its passengers are dangerous ex-taxi drivers or similar desperate individuals whom either the government deemed as unsafe to driver public by refusing to renew their Chauffer’s license due to their criminal records or the insurance companies found them too dangerous to provide coverage. As it further proves that the ideal UBER’s driving candidates are people like Miguel Moran Diaz, an UBER driver who got arrested by FBI in Miami, for being a strong ISIS supporter or like Duncan Eric Burton, who was in federal prison for 14 years before, UBER was delighted to hire him and soon after he was arrested for raping an UBER passenger.
And sadly, there are those who just want to save money when transporting themselves and they don’t care if the driver of their ride is an ISIS terrorist or a serial rapist, or whether or not they have insurance. I swear to my God that I was absolutely stunned to hear one of the UBER passenger saying these words when he decided to ride my taxi at the time when the UBER was charging high rates due to its surge pricing. He was constantly babbling thru out his 15 minutes ride in my taxi that if a rider is willing to take his chances for saving money by riding an un-insured or a serious criminal, because he thought even a serial murderer doesn’t kill every day. And I rest my case.
Uber and lyft are making a mockery of safety and the rules. With thousands of millions of dollars they buy off the politicians. No insurance no Inspections no fees paid to the airport’s drivers who can’t pass a criminal background check of course they can do it cheaper. We must never forget that the reason for regulation was because many years ago when there was no regulation the public mistaken iadvantage of. Uber and lyft are not insured probably, not licensed probably, not inspected properly, so when people get hurt and they will be hurt there will be no insurance to cover it. It’s all about money – Uber and Lyft can afford a dozen of the most expensive lobbyist and contribute to every politicians reelection fund. They buy the politicians.. They spend millions upon millions in advertising to convince the public that 2 + 2 equals 5. They tell you how wonderful their drivers like working Huber and left while in fact they take advantage of the drivers providing absolutely no benefits locking them in to vehicles that wind up costing as much as twice what they really worth they tell you how wonderful their drivers like working over and lift while in fact they take advantage of the drivers providing absolutely no benefits while locking them in to vehicles that wind up costing as much as twice what they really worth. This sub prime lenses get paid directly from Huber and left before the driver gets his cut locking him in once he signs up for five years. Huber doesn’t like drivers they want automated vehicles they don’t really care about the drivers at all. Huber doesn’t like drivers they want automated vehicles they don’t really care about the drivers at all they don’t even have a business model that shows that if they play by the rules they would be profitable . For them it’s just about raising money from investors . One day they will try to make a profit who knows few start ups like these never make a profit once they have to play by the rules
Correction: $500/week…
xs
You missed the main comparative advantage that Uber has over taxis, and that is the medallion system.
Taxi drivers must have weekly rentals in the range of $500/month for the use of the franchise. That is onerous and plain wrong.
The county should never have limited “medallions” in such a draconian way – to the point that the last eight auctioned brought in an average in the low six-figures.
Ideally, taxi operators would each own his/her own medallion and pay a nominal fee to the county for the cost of regulating the system.
The same would be true for Uber and other vehicles-for-hire.
And lobbyists wouldn’t be needed at all.
Xavier
Mr. Xavier Suarez, the $500/wk payment that you mentioned in your comments, made by the taxi drivers to the taxi companies is consists of $84 radio dispatch + $12 For-Hire license (i.e. $625/52=$12) +$150 (weekly 24/7 insurance) =$245; so the difference is now $500-$246 =$254. So your $500 are now reduced to $254 which you are complaining about in your comments. To understand where could it go read on:
This $254 goes towards the financing for the medallion which goes towards the cost of the medallion which was paid to your beloved Miami-Dade County at the time of the issuance of the medallion. Just to give you an idea, only the simple interest of financing of the medallion, could be as high as $828/week (not the compounded interest) $828 is already way more than $500/week that you mentioned in your comments. To simplify this for the you read on:
For example, the last auction held by the Miami-Dade County on Feb 14, 2012, brought the highest price for the medallion of $431,000.00; if you calculate the simple interest on that amount at 10% of nominal commercial interest rate than just the interest only is $43,100/year without any amortization as shown below:
$431000 x 10% =$43100/year or each week $43100/52 = $828
So for this particular medallion which was sold for $431,000.00, if I add all this together it will be:
Radio Dispatch $84
For-Hire license fee $12
Insurance 24/7 $150
Simple interest $828
TOTAL $1074
Thank God, most medallions were not sold for $431,000 otherwise the minimum payment for the taxi drivers would be $1074/week instead of $500/week.
Let me advise you that medallion system enforces supply and demand, and prevent slave like conditions in which a For-Hire driver would earn at least the min Florida wage of $8.05. This means that if a taxi driver who works his full shift of 12 hours than he should be able to make $8.05 x 12 = $96.60 in his shift, which pretty much what most taxi drivers were earning before the arrival of UBER. Entry of UBER has violated the supply and demand and UBER vehicles are removing the jobs which before taxi drivers were picking up. Therefore, now there is less for the taxi drives and most cab drivers are making way less than the minimum Florida wage of $8.05/hr. To understand what is happening to the job of the taxi drivers, imagine that if there is only room for 2 people in a room and you cram 100 people in that room than the original 2 habitants suffocate and get run over by the extra 98 people in that room. Taxi drivers were like the original 2 people in the room and they cannot make money anymore. It’s the taxi drivers job which is up for grabs by the illegally operating UBER drivers. And by not enforcing its For-Hire laws, Miami-Dade County is guilty of creating slavery in which its taxi drivers are forced to earn less than the minimum wage. Majority of the UBER drivers are part time drivers which UBER admits by itself. The UBER drivers already have regular jobs while their part time job’s actions are causing the elimination of taxi drivers jobs. Particularly, those taxi drivers who own their medallions are stuck and cannot just stop driving taxi because of their investment in the medallion system which Miami-Dade County promised that it will not allow to erode its values. I can guarantee you that a law suit awaits for Carlos Gimenez for not enforcing the Miami-Dade For-Hire license laws. Mr. Xavier Suarez I just give you news about a legitimate lawsuit that the Miami-Dade which is in the pipeline, and its only the matter of time when the filth hits the fan, and it will be all over.
Let’s start by ending the medallion process (and we need to refund the cost of the medallions purchased over the last 5 years on a declining amortization basis, so that’s going to hurt, but it will be fair). Let’s require background checks of everyone who drives and disqualify anyone with a criminal background, spotting driving record, or any history of DWI. Let’s impose strict liability insurance requirements (say at least $1 million per person injured with a $5 million dollar cap plus $1 million in collision and casualty). And as part of the new regulatory scheme, the new drivers waive any objection to being pulled over to have their licenses and insurance checked. We keep the $2 pick up fee at the airport. We impose the same newness and equipment standards on all cars. And we make all Uber and Lyft drivers either have wheelchair accessible vans OR Uber and Lyft agree to have at least 25 to 30 vans on call stationed around the County 24/7/365. That evens the playing field.
I’m with Horace Feliu, as things stand in Miami now, one group is sanctioned to break the law and the other group is completely restrained by it. So which is it?
The solution would be to de-regulate the entire taxi industry so that everyone may operate on a level playing field. Competition and innovation is necessary. The consumer would have to realize… “let the buyer be ware”. Companies that want to stay in business will have to provide the best services in order to survive…. this is the American way. Uber has built a “better mouse trap.”
what now I’m in Paris France is it no more Uber .We should let the Commission know is it illegal they much stop Uber now.
I would like the County to refund my $625.00 annual renewal fee.
I would like the County to refund the $430,000.00 paid for the
purchase of medallions @ auction.
Has anyone in Florida bothered to look at Uber’s own dedicated driver recruitment website for New York City?
NYC has some of the toughest regulations and enforcement in the country, and yet when it comes to complying with criminal background checks, licensure and commercial insurance, you know what Uber says?
“It’s a pretty ‘simple’ process.” (Again, their words, not mine.)
Here’s the whole quote:
In order to drive with Uber in New York City, you need a TLC (Taxi and Limousine Commission) license. It’s a pretty simple process and we’re here to help you every step of the way.
But don’t take my word for it. See it for yourself here: http://www.driveubernyc.com/tlc/
I guess New Yorker’s lives matter, but Floridian’s lives are “simply” an acceptable business risk for Uber.
Uber’s future is tied to the next big political event coming soon. When we get back the power steeling by the multimillionaire corporations, we will see the real and good transportation sistem America needs. A popular and massive political revolution will finish this situation.
Miami political corruption makes rules apply to the idiots.
BULLSEYE SOMEBODY FINALLY SEE THE FACTS
Has anyone bothered to ask what the consumers (the ones actually paying to be taken from here to there) want?
I think we all know the answer, the medallion system is the closest thing to slavery that currently exist in Miami Dade county. It’s needles and large cost that is also passed on to consumers.
You are starting to make the Libertarian argument You’re right government regulation both stifles and protects the cabs.
As far a regulating the new model?. Ever heard of Adam Smith the invisible hand ?
Concerned with sketchy drivers and lousy cars? Let the cab industry subject itself to the transparent crowd sourcing rating that Uber does. How about a selection of nearby cabs based on pickup time, driver rating or type of car? How about easy e-pay no need to carry cash?
No question Uber’s designed a better mousetrap and without some artificial market protection the cab will go the way of the buggy whip. That’s a given
The only question left, how is local government going to shake down the new business under their pretense of protecting the public?
the mayor has other things of interest that is causing him to side with uber.
Somehow there must be a reason why the mayor of Miami is allowing a car service company to operate illegally. Does he realize the domino effect of what is happening?
does the mayor realize that UBER is not paying taxes or any fees or permits to the City of Miami.
it is most obvious that the mayor of Miami is not doing the right thing for the city of Miami.
Awesome comments. I think the thing of interest for the Mayor Carlos Gimenez is the huge Bribery by UBER.
“Forcing Gimenez and the rest of the commission to dance to his tune?” Au contraire, like the less attractive girls sitting by their chaperons at the Electricians’ Hall Open Houses, these politicos are all too willing to bump and grind with Lopez!
Absolutely correct and 200% good article. TNC don’t care about public or drivers, they out thereto make big bucks.
Did anyone in this county voted or elected this Jorge Luis Lopez character to any public office? It seems to me that this individual is making a mockery of our system by holding the strings of private companies and forcing Gimenez and the rest of the commission to dance to his tune. The question that begs asking here is what kind of cowards are hiding at the State Attorney’s Office, the Miami Dade Commission on Ethics Office and the Office of the Inspector General who allow this parasyte and the rest of his kind to crawl from under rocks, walk up to the 29th floor of the county building and tell elected officials what to do? Is there a depository anywhere in the Stephen Clark Center were men who are supposed to be looking after the public interests hang their testicles as they come to work daily in the listed offices? Is there any law enforcement official out there with enough intestinal fortitude to grab these lobbyists by the ear and drag them to DCJ? All we hear is crickets chirping in the background.