LA Cabbies Protest Ride-Sharing Apps

Taxi driver protest in Los Angeles
Image: AP, as posted in news.yahoo.com

Once upon a time, taxi cab drivers would have conducted protests against what they perceived as low fares, unfair law enforcement, or unpopular regulations. Well, our data-driven nightmare has created a new front against which taxi drivers find themselves fighting: They're struggling against an app onslaught threatening their livelihoods.

Apps? Well, yes. Instead of something quaint like a phone call or hailing a cab on the street, an increasing number of people use apps to "share" a ride from the like-minded. Apps are the bloodstream for ride-sharing enterprises, such as Lyft, Sidecar, and UberX. The success of these businesses has riled Los Angeles cabbies to the point of public protest. According to an Associated Press story appearing in siliconvalley.com, taxi drivers in the City of Angels "staged a noisy protest" over the businesses using smartphone-capable apps to muscle into the cabbies' turf.

The city bureaucracy issued cease-and-desist orders to the ride-sharing firms earlier this week. So far, the affected businesses have turned up their collective noses, claiming they are only answerable to the Caesars in California's state capital, Sacramento.