tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2830084253401570472.post3152906904273749987..comments2024-03-28T09:22:36.967+13:00Comments on Offsetting Behaviour: Jitney supply restrictionsEric Cramptonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15831696523324469713noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2830084253401570472.post-86297666284646317732014-03-18T11:14:43.028+13:002014-03-18T11:14:43.028+13:00Status quo: all drivers are supposed to have passe...Status quo: all drivers are supposed to have passed a knowledge test. These drivers might nevertheless take tourists on dishonest and roundabout routes.<br /><br />My proposal: The local knowledge test be optional, with cab companies certainly be free to advertise at the airport that they only use drivers who have passed the local knowledge test. They'd be subject to standard truth-in-advertising restrictions requiring that, if they say they only used licensed drivers, that that be true. But, as is the case now, there remains no guarantee that the drivers will not take tourists on roundabout routes.<br /><br /><br /><br />Your critique: Drivers under my proposal may take dishonest and roundabout routes.Eric Cramptonhttp://offsettingbehaviour.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2830084253401570472.post-88688727590100235062014-03-18T10:58:44.779+13:002014-03-18T10:58:44.779+13:00It's not just about possessing local knowledge...It's not just about possessing local knowledge, it's also about using it honestly. <br /><br /><br />It seems in everyone's interest (except the tourist) for the taxi company to pay the airport to put their name on the "We're knowledgeable and honest " sign, then take tourists on dishonest(roundabout) routes.Doug Wilsonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2830084253401570472.post-18745346974404687992014-03-18T10:55:31.174+13:002014-03-18T10:55:31.174+13:00All we really need is a big sign at the airport sa...All we really need is a big sign at the airport saying which cab companies use only drivers who have passed the local knowledge test. That would catch the vast majority of tourists. Then it's up to them.Eric Cramptonhttp://offsettingbehaviour.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2830084253401570472.post-81678911712949281392014-03-18T09:16:13.681+13:002014-03-18T09:16:13.681+13:00This is a great point. The situation seems exacerb...This is a great point. The situation seems exacerbated by an ability of cab drivers to differentiate between tourists and locals, so a yelp-like reputation system may be ineffective.<br /><br />Clients could just tell the cab driver to follow the GPS route on the client's phone, but part of the value a cab driver can provide is in being better than a GPS at choosing routes, ether due to short term anomalies in the road network or bugs in the GPS system. <br /><br />Does anyone care to speculate how could the market allow tourists to trust cab drivers to use their knowledge to override the GPS when appropriate?Doug Wilsonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2830084253401570472.post-5230961073686325652014-03-17T16:30:52.620+13:002014-03-17T16:30:52.620+13:00"If your cab company charges less but has clu..."If your cab company charges less but has clueless drivers, people will only hire you for routes they know; if your drivers know the best way to everywhere, folks needing that will pay the premium for it."<br /><br />I agree with almost all of this post, apart from the above quote. People who don't know the route they wish to travel are probably highly correlated with people who don't know anything about the local cab companies (think tourists), so there is the potential for an information based market failure here. <br /><br /><br />Of course, access to GPS can help resolve that market failure.Evannoreply@blogger.com