April 10, 2015
by Nick Novak
Originally published by The Washington Times.
It’s one of the oldest stories in the book. A new technology is invented, businesses begin to implement that technology, and then big-government bureaucrats decide they need to regulate it.
I’m sure the horse and buggy lobby was pretty upset when the first cars started to roll off the assembly line. Unfortunately for them, their friends in government couldn’t do anything to stop Henry Ford’s success, and my guess is the politicians that firmly oppose the free market won’t be able to do anything to stop another new innovation today.
Uber and Lyft have been around for a while, but they have recently started to gain greater prominence across the country as an easier, more efficient and cheaper way to get from one place to the other. That prominence has led to increased scrutiny, however.
Many cities are trying to keep Transportation Network Companies – or TNCs – like Uber and Lyft from operating. The cities claim they are identical to taxis, and therefore should operate under the hoards of red tape that regulate that industry. Both Uber and Lyft argue they are different, and I would agree with them.
These companies contract with private individuals who drive their own vehicles, and it is all done through a cell phone app. This disruptive technology has created a better way to get around that isn’t subject to government overreach.
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