Category Archives: econ

The sky is not falling

Posted on August 20, 2011 by kfarr

I am writing to share some reactions to Claire Cain Miller’s piece in the New York Times, “Silicon Valley Booms but Worries About a New Bust.” I met Claire at the Founder Showcase event she mentions in her article and … Continue reading →

Posted in econ, internets, media, tech, work | Tagged boom, bust, farr, fundraising, gross margin, kfarr, kieran, new york, new york times, nyt, nytimes, quote, saas, silicon valley | 4 Comments

SFMTA Taxi Medallion Sales Pilot Program

Posted on April 26, 2010 by kfarr

(PDF Link) I’m returning from my blogging hiatus at an amazingly unique time in the history of San Francisco taxi regulation. In the past I’ve written extensively about the San Francisco medallion system and other regulations, including: What would be … Continue reading →

Posted in econ, politics, taxi | Tagged authority, cta, medallion, mta, municipal transportation agency, permit, permitting, san francisco, San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, sf, sfmta, taxi, transferability, transferable, transportation | 1 Comment

When should public transportation systems be private?

Posted on July 10, 2008 by kfarr

A recent episode of Russ Roberts’ EconTalk podcast featured a wonderful intersection of interests: economics, public policy and public transit. One of Russ’ academia friends, economist Michael Munger, speaks at length on the program about the public transportation system quality … Continue reading →

Posted in econ, politics, transit | Tagged brt, city, econ, economics, econtalk, effectiveness, geary, macro, micro, mike, munger, muni, planning, policy, project, public, roberts, russ, russ roberts, san francisco, sf, talk, transit, transportation | 3 Comments

Cab driving: earnings update

Posted on June 4, 2008 by kfarr

Time for an earnings update. My earnings floor — the lowest take-home pay I can expect — is increasing from the record lows of the winter. In other words, it’s rare this time of year to see a shift that … Continue reading →

Posted in econ, taxi, work | Tagged average, ca, cab, cabbie, california, cents, chart, cluster, dollars, driver, driving, earnings, euro, gas, gas prices, graph, historical, how, how much does a cab driver earn, inflation, many, mean, median, mode, money, much, pay, prices, san francisco, sf, shift, summer, take-home, taxi, taxicab, tourist | 2 Comments

Robots are better at space exploration than humans.

Posted on May 28, 2008 by kfarr

As many close friends can attest, I dream of the future human colonization of planets in our solar system and beyond. Ah, how I stew in the romance of this idea. After doing some math prompted by lively debate on … Continue reading →

Posted in econ, tech | Tagged automation, colonization, colony, costs, exploration, explore, explorer, fly, investment, jet, jpl, land, lander, mars, nasa, outer, output, phoenix, planet, propulsion, red, return, robots, rover, space, surveyor, usa | Leave a comment

Thank a DPT traffic control officer today.

Posted on May 9, 2008 by kfarr

DPT officers get a bad rap. Everyone seems to despise them, yet they are a crucial element necessary to help all of us to effectively share our City streets. Here are a few of the ways they make our lives … Continue reading →

Posted in econ, politics, transit | Tagged authority, california, charge, cleaning, curbed, department, double, double-park, dpt, fee, fine, generate, income, mta, municipal, municipality, officer, park, parking, parking ticket, revenue, san francisco, sf, sfmta, street, street cleaning, ticket, traffic, transit, transportation, wheels | Leave a comment

You’re richer than you think.

Posted on April 30, 2008 by kfarr

While sitting in the queue to pay the toll for the Bay Bridge Monday, I heard two great counterintuitive pieces on KQED. The first was a thoughtful comparison between our quality of life now compared to the distant past. It … Continue reading →

Posted in econ, happiness | Tagged american, bank, card, costs, credit, credit card, debt, econ, economics, expenses, home, income, increase, input, interest, leader, life, living, loan, media, national, npr, of, outlay, output, pay, personal, personal debt, public, quality, radio, rate, ruler, salary, savings | Leave a comment

Cab earnings update: seasonal rise in demand for taxis offsets increased fuel and gate costs.

Posted on April 24, 2008 by kfarr

San Francisco cab drivers face two recent cost pressures: a recent gate fee increase combined with the recent climb in gas prices. Fortunately, these cost pressures come at a time when aggregate demand for taxis in the City is increasing. … Continue reading →

Posted in econ, politics, taxi, transit | Tagged aggregate, cab, city, cost, demand, earnings, econ, employment, fee, forecast, fuel, gas, gate, gate fee, home, hourly, increase, infrastructure, labor, macro, micro, oil, pay, rise, san francisco, seasonal, sf, shift, take, take-home, taxi, taxicab, tips, transit, transportation, wage, winter, worker | 1 Comment

Driving a slow weekend in the City

Posted on April 24, 2008 by kfarr

It was another slow weekend in San Francisco. During my shifts I witnessed a non-trivial collision. A Toyota pickup truck was traveling behind me south on South Van Ness. As we approached the 16th Street intersection he passed me on … Continue reading →

Posted in econ, politics, taxi, work | Tagged aid, attempts, ca, cab, california, car, caravan, career, Chrysler, city, cost, counseling, culture, dodge, downtown, durango, english, espanol, gallon, gas, gas mileage, help, homeless, intrepid, language, left, mexican, mexico, mileage, miles, mpg, oil, per, poverty, price, program, rent, right, san francisco, sf, spanish, speaking, subsidy, taxi, taxicab | Leave a comment

Sad news: New York City congestion fee proposal killed by New York State.

Posted on April 8, 2008 by kfarr

The NY Times reports on the sad news that the New York State Assembly vetoed New York City Mayor Bloomberg’s proposal to charge drivers to enter Manhattan during peak times. While I do not understand the legal wrangling between agencies … Continue reading →

Posted in econ, politics, transit | Tagged albany, bloomberg, city, congestion, fee, hour, mayor, new york, new york city, nyc, peak, personal, pricing, proposal, road, roadway, san francisco, sf, throughput, toll, vehicle | Leave a comment