The Price Of Medallions Needed To Operate Taxis In Philly Is Down
CITY HALL (CBS) -- An economic bubble has burst in Philadelphia, and it's not clear whether it's going to come back. The price of the medallions needed to operate taxis in the city is down to where it was a decade ago.
The Parking Authority Board at its monthly meeting, approved the sale of two medallions, one for 75-thousand and one for 80-thousand dollars. That's a long way from the peak, two years ago, of 545-thousand.
Some of the loss in value is, no doubt, due to competition from ride-share service Uber, but Parking Authority general counsel Dennis Weldon said a lot of speculation went in to inflating values in the first place.
"There was a lot of money available," Weldon said. "It was an asset that was secured. The medallion is a property right. Banks were willing to invest the money there."
Medallion owner Everett Abitbol said a market correction was likely, even without Uber, but a rebound will be difficult unless the field is leveled between unfettered Uber and what he calls the hyper-regulation of cabs.
"The frictions and hurdles put in place by regulation are really the larger driving force here."
A bill in Harrisburg would impose some regulation on Uber, but there are no plans to deregulate cabs.