It Costs Over $1 Million For A Licensed NYC Taxi  Cab fares
around Manhattan can be ridiculous, that's expected. But imagine
paying more than $1 million just to own a licensed taxi in New
York City. That's the reality now.  The New York Times reported
that the city's first taxi medallion auction since 2008 netted
$200 million for the sale of 200 of the licenses, making the
average price of entry to legally drive one of the roughly
15,000 yellow cabs is almost double what it was at that last
auction. The medallion system goes back to the 1930s and was
designed to keep the number of cabs limited to a sustainable
amount.  In another sign of the times at the auction, two
medallions sold as a "mini-fleet" went for a record $2.5
million, also roughly twice as much as in 2008.   Taxi
commissioner David Yassky told the Times the industry was
becoming "winner take-all" and that the idea of a taxi driver
actually being able to own his or her taxi company one day is
becoming increasingly difficult.  Of course, the taxi