印度禁止网络租车引发担忧

    From VOA Learning English, this is the Economics Report.
    这里是美国之音慢速英语经济报道。

    The Indian government recently called for all unregistered taxi services to halt operations. The order came after the reported rape of a woman by a driver for the company Uber in the capital New Delhi. Uber uses a mobile app to link drivers and people seeking a ride.
    印度政府最近要求所有未注册出租车停止运营。该命令是在首都新德里一位妇女被Uber公司的司机强奸之后出台的。Uber公司利用移动应用程序将司机与寻求搭车者联系起来。

    A statement from Uber said the company will "work with the government of India to establish clear background checks currently absent in their commercial transportation licensing programs."
    Uber公司的一份声明表示,该公司将与印度政府合作,进行目前他们的商业运输许可计划中缺少的明确背景调查。

    The incident has brought attention to the issue of rules for mobile service businesses. The issue has grown more important with the expansion of what is called the "sharing economy."
    这一事件引发了人们对移动业务规则问题的关注。随着所谓“共享经济”的扩张,这一问题变得愈发重要。

    Uber has been expanding quickly. The company says it operates in over 200 cities and over 50 countries around the world. Its fast growth has led financial experts to value the company in the billions of dollars. However, Uber's expansion has placed it in competition with existing taxi services and caused some cities and countries to ban the ride-sharing service.
    Uber公司不断迅速扩张。该公司表示它在全球50多个国家的200多个城市运营。该公司的快速增长使得金融专家为该公司估值数十亿美元。然而,Uber公司的扩张也使其陷入与现有出租车的竞争,并造成一些国家和城市禁止这种搭车服务。

    Uber has faced or is facing bans in Germany, Spain, India and Thailand. Franch recently said it plans to block Uber services that use non professional drivers. In the U.S., opposition is widespread but uneven.
    Uber公司在德国、西班牙、印度和泰国已经或正面临禁令。法国最近表示计划禁止使用非专业司机的Uber服务。在美国,Uber公司面临的反对也很普遍但是并不均衡。

    In Pennsylvania, for example, UberX, a low-cost ride-sharing service from Uber can operate anywhere except the state's largest city Philadelphia. There, Uber Black, a more expensive limousine service from Uber, and other taxi services legally operate with licenses from the Philadelphia Parking Authority.
    以宾夕法尼亚州为例,来自Uber公司的低成本搭车服务UberX可以在该州最大城市费城之外的任何地方运营。而在费城,Uber Black这种更贵的豪华车服务,以及其它出租车服务在拥有费城停车管理局许可下就能合法运营。

    The sharing economy permits individuals to rent things they own such as a car or an extra room to people anywhere using mobile apps. Even payment is through an app.
    共享经济允许个人把自己拥有的东西,像汽车或多余房间,租给任何地方使用移动应用程序的人士。甚至通过应用程序支付。

    The issue is that these transactions are not supervised the way taxi services or hotels are. Critics say they can be unsafe. Philadelphia Parking Authority director Vince Fenerty calls the unregulated taxi services "hacks."
    问题是这些交易不像出租车或宾馆那样受到监督。批评者认为它们可能不安全。费城停车管理局局长Vince Fenerty称这种不受管制的出租车为黑车。

    "They are basically running what's called a hack taxicab service. A totally unregulated service which brings into question the safety of the passenger, the credentials of the driver and the mechanical workings of the vehicle. They submit to nothing."
    “他们基本是在经营所谓的黑出租车。这种完全不受管制的黑车的乘客安全、司机资格和车辆车况都成问题。他们没提供任何东西。”

    Uber says on its website that every ridesharing driver is investigated using a criminal background check. But in the reported case in India, the company is accused of not performing a check of the driver's criminal record.
    Uber公司表示在它的官方网站上,每位搭车司机都通过犯罪背景记录进行了调查。但是在印度报道的这起案例中,该公司被指控未对该司机的犯罪记录进行调查。

    Uber has been supporting changes in local laws to permit its service. The city of Chicago has approved rules for a mobile app to assist taxi services licensed by the city. New York is considering a similar measure.
    Uber公司一直支持修改当地法律来允许其运营。芝加哥市已经批准法规允许使用一种协助该市正规出租车的移动应用程序。纽约市也在考虑类似措施。

    And that's the Economics Report. I'm Mario Ritter.
    以上就是本期经济报道的全部内容。我是马里奥·理特(Mario Ritter)。(51VOA.COM对本文翻译保留全部权利,未经授权请勿转载,违者必究!)