MEDALLION VALUES CONTINUE TO SKYROCKET
Remember the days where a yellow cab medallion in NYC was affordable? It seems like ages ago when a medallion could be bought for $400,000. In fact, that only dates back to circa 2005. Since then, the medallion has shot up in value to greater than $1,000,000.
Of course there are two types of medallions (independent/corporate), one more valuable than the other, but the notion of buying a taxicab for $1MM+ seems a bit much when the income the cab generates is not on par with the cost to own.
In conclusion, owning a taxicab is like owning real estate. You buy the cab not for appreciation (although it would've been nice to own a cab since pre-2005), but for the steady income. NYC's yellow cab industry is a highly recession proof business: people always need reliable transportation in this concrete jungle.