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Copyright
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(Copyright © 1986, Transportation Research Board, National Research Council, National Academy of Sciences USA, Publisher SAGE Publishing) |
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Abstract
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In both Seattle and San Diego, the regulations that were reduced were restrictions on entry und restrictions on rates. The period that I am considering for Seattle is 1979 through the end of 1981, which is now a while ago, but that was the period covered by UMTA's survey. The period I am considering for San Diego is 1979 through 1984.
Changes in Seattle involved two jurisdictions-the city of Seattle and King County. Two years before the changes in rate and entry restrictions, the two jurisdictions had established taxi license reciprocity, effectively merging their taxi markets. However, the two took separate paths for regulatory reform. In the county, open rate setting began in May 1979 and open entry began over a year later in June 1980. The city introduced both open rate setting and open entry in June 1979. (The reciprocity agreement was thus effectively suspended for new city entrants during the intervening year.) Because there were companies serving both jurisdictions, this somewhat uncoordinated revi- sion approach must be regarded as a potentially influential,site-specific circumstance that serves to retard generalization from the case, although with the city market outweighing the county by approximately 5 to 1, effects were probably modest.
Perhaps curiously, there was prohibition of external posting of the rates until May 1981 when external posting became required. Certainly it reduced the latitude for any kind of comparison shopping, even if common units were used.
Before the removal of entry restrictions in Seattle, the three largest firms together held 70 percent of the licenses. Between August 1979 and August 1981 the number of taxi licenses in Seattle rose from 421 to 527 (25.2 percent). In the process the industry became somewhat less concentrated, with the greatest growth being found among moderate-sized firms. Although there was an increase in the number of single-cab firms, their share of the market increased by less than 1 percent. Three- fourths of the new licenses-those taken by companies in the two largest size categories-went to firms generally suited to serving the telephone segment of the market. This emphasis on the pattern of expansion is consistent with increasing the role of competitive forces in the taxi industry...
Language: en |