[rayiner]

New York medallion owners are definitely milking the value of their monopoly, but it's really hard to make the consumers are getting shafted argument when Uber is much more expensive than traditional cabs.

The solution for Uber and the like isn't progressive regulation that puts them in a different category. Uber walks like a cab service and quacks like one, the only difference is a more modern method of hailing. Cities should deregulate their cab systems to increase supply, but categorize services like Uber within the same cab regime.

Also: the population of Manhattan is 25% smaller today than it was in 1950, so that means more medallions per person. Also, it has probably a lot more private cars.