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Uber loses licence to operate in London, will still operate while appealing

(www.bbc.com)
256 points reubensutton | 1 comments | 25 Nov 19 10:19 UTC | HN request time: 0s | source
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_vrmm ◴[25 Nov 19 10:59 UTC] No.21627000[source]▶
I know this opinion is not popular but I'm so happy everytime I see bad news for Uber and all these companies that only exist thanks to basically exploiting THEIR workers.

Private transporting is not sustainable and it is not something that has to be affordable for everyone, even less by lowering workers wages or playing with the tariffs by demand. Taxi regulations gives us passengers safety and fair prices. There are taxi apps that work exactly like Uber's like 'Free-now' where you can see your trip, its aproximate cost, the driver's rating...

We have to promote governments that support affordable and good quality public transport, even though I love driving alone in my car.

I hope Deliveroo, Glovo and other companies are also punished for their labour rights abuses. Make sure your delivery guy is payed fairly or either go to the restaurant yourself.

So many years of labour rights fights being attacked by these startups that do not invent anything but base their business model on lower wages.

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djohnston ◴[25 Nov 19 11:26 UTC] No.21627130[source]▶
I can agree with you on worker treatment but I take issue with "So many years of labour rights fights being attacked by these startups that do not invent anything but base their business model on lower wages."

The only reason ANY of the taxi companies have improved service with new apps and lower prices is because of the competition introduced by ride sharing companies.

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TeMPOraL ◴[25 Nov 19 12:09 UTC] No.21627365[source]▶
Let's not conflate Uber with ride sharing/app-taxi in general. Uber wasn't the first company of its type, it's only the one that became most known. It also wasn't like all the other ride share companies, it was well-known for utter disregard for laws and deeply sociopathic management. And it's not like this behavior was necessary to bring in all the innovation; disruption of the taxi space by private companies was happening for a while now. Uber only used its antisocial behavior to gain market dominance, and as a side effect it legitimized such dishonorable practices in the startup scene.

Personally, I like and use this "new breed" of app-based taxi services (except Uber). I just want to see Uber finally die. It should have died years ago.

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asah ◴[25 Nov 19 12:36 UTC] No.21627552[source]▶
Very interesting, I sense you're right. Got examples?
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1. TeMPOraL ◴[25 Nov 19 21:51 UTC] No.21633188[source]▶
My favorite example is iCar - a private company that successfully broke into the taxi market in my city (Kraków, Poland) some 15 years ago. AFAIR, they exploited a legal loophole that, coupled with increasing popularity of GPS car navigation, let them run with a single taxi license for the entire company (vs. each driver). Legacy taxi drivers were pissed, there were few cases of tire slashing on both sides, then the courts got involved, taxi regulations got clarified, and the company is alive to this very day. I switched to them the moment I first heard of them, and rode with them up until MyTaxi came, offering an app that could be used not just to order a ride, but also pay for it.