[ceallen]

And it's worth pointing out that taxi licenses are really an artificial barrier to entry to keep existing taxi services safe. Atlanta's apparently costs a median 36,000, and in big cities like Boston or NYC, they can run into the hundreds of thousands.

These licenses aren't tied to a driver, rather they usually lease them from a managing company. Safety's got nothing to do with it.

(ref http://taxirisk.com/taxicab-facts-for-atlanta-georgia/)