The Long and Winding Road: Policy Frictions and theGovernance of Ride‐Hailing Platforms in Latin America

The rise of ride‐hailing platforms has profoundly transformed urban mobility in Latin America over the past decade. Transportation Network Companies such as Uber, DiDi, Cabify, InDrive, and others operating in the region have affected transportation patterns and intensified debates around labor rela...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor: Sáenz Leandro, Ronald
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2026
País:España
Institución:Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC)
Repositorio:O2, repositorio institucional de la UOC
OAI Identifier:oai:openaccess.uoc.edu:10609/153959
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10609/153959
https://doi.org/10.1111/lamp.70039
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Chile
Colombia
Costa Rica
Latin America
platform governance
regulation
ride‐hailing
id ES_150f3b5e28fa632a63f65ae06e8ade5f
oai_identifier_str oai:openaccess.uoc.edu:10609/153959
network_acronym_str ES
network_name_str España
repository_id_str
spelling The Long and Winding Road: Policy Frictions and theGovernance of Ride‐Hailing Platforms in Latin AmericaSáenz Leandro, RonaldChileColombiaCosta RicaLatin Americaplatform governanceregulationride‐hailingThe rise of ride‐hailing platforms has profoundly transformed urban mobility in Latin America over the past decade. Transportation Network Companies such as Uber, DiDi, Cabify, InDrive, and others operating in the region have affected transportation patterns and intensified debates around labor relations, algorithmic management, regulatory challenges, and urban sustainability. This article examines the trajectories of platform regulation in Chile, Colombia, and Costa Rica through the lens of platform‐policy frictions, highlighting the tensions and negotiations between the aspirations of platform capitalism and the particularities of local environments. More than 10 years after Transportation Network Companies arrived in the region, Chile has enacted a regulatory framework, whereas Colombia and Costa Rica continue to grapple with legislative inertia and fragmented policy responses. The study introduces the concept of the “De Facto Deregulation Trap” to explain how institutional fragmentation, political stalemate, and stakeholder strategies perpetuate indefinite regulatory uncertainty. The research highlights how regulatory outcomes on platform regulation depend on political negotiations, institutional capacities, and stakeholder power dynamics. The findings contribute to the literature on platform governance by demonstrating how frictions operate as barriers to regulation and arenas for contestation and adaptation in the Global South, offering valuable lessons for global tech policy and digital change.John Wiley & Son202620262026info:eu-repo/semantics/articleinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersionapplication/pdfhttps://hdl.handle.net/10609/153959https://doi.org/10.1111/lamp.70039reponame:O2, repositorio institucional de la UOCinstname:Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC)InglésLatin American Policy, 2026, 27(1)https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.29042591Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 Internationalhttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessoai:openaccess.uoc.edu:10609/1539592026-05-28T12:42:01Z
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv The Long and Winding Road: Policy Frictions and theGovernance of Ride‐Hailing Platforms in Latin America
title The Long and Winding Road: Policy Frictions and theGovernance of Ride‐Hailing Platforms in Latin America
spellingShingle The Long and Winding Road: Policy Frictions and theGovernance of Ride‐Hailing Platforms in Latin America
Sáenz Leandro, Ronald
Chile
Colombia
Costa Rica
Latin America
platform governance
regulation
ride‐hailing
title_short The Long and Winding Road: Policy Frictions and theGovernance of Ride‐Hailing Platforms in Latin America
title_full The Long and Winding Road: Policy Frictions and theGovernance of Ride‐Hailing Platforms in Latin America
title_fullStr The Long and Winding Road: Policy Frictions and theGovernance of Ride‐Hailing Platforms in Latin America
title_full_unstemmed The Long and Winding Road: Policy Frictions and theGovernance of Ride‐Hailing Platforms in Latin America
title_sort The Long and Winding Road: Policy Frictions and theGovernance of Ride‐Hailing Platforms in Latin America
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Sáenz Leandro, Ronald
author Sáenz Leandro, Ronald
author_facet Sáenz Leandro, Ronald
author_role author
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Chile
Colombia
Costa Rica
Latin America
platform governance
regulation
ride‐hailing
topic Chile
Colombia
Costa Rica
Latin America
platform governance
regulation
ride‐hailing
description The rise of ride‐hailing platforms has profoundly transformed urban mobility in Latin America over the past decade. Transportation Network Companies such as Uber, DiDi, Cabify, InDrive, and others operating in the region have affected transportation patterns and intensified debates around labor relations, algorithmic management, regulatory challenges, and urban sustainability. This article examines the trajectories of platform regulation in Chile, Colombia, and Costa Rica through the lens of platform‐policy frictions, highlighting the tensions and negotiations between the aspirations of platform capitalism and the particularities of local environments. More than 10 years after Transportation Network Companies arrived in the region, Chile has enacted a regulatory framework, whereas Colombia and Costa Rica continue to grapple with legislative inertia and fragmented policy responses. The study introduces the concept of the “De Facto Deregulation Trap” to explain how institutional fragmentation, political stalemate, and stakeholder strategies perpetuate indefinite regulatory uncertainty. The research highlights how regulatory outcomes on platform regulation depend on political negotiations, institutional capacities, and stakeholder power dynamics. The findings contribute to the literature on platform governance by demonstrating how frictions operate as barriers to regulation and arenas for contestation and adaptation in the Global South, offering valuable lessons for global tech policy and digital change.
publishDate 2026
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2026
2026
2026
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/article
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
format article
status_str publishedVersion
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv https://hdl.handle.net/10609/153959
https://doi.org/10.1111/lamp.70039
url https://hdl.handle.net/10609/153959
https://doi.org/10.1111/lamp.70039
dc.language.none.fl_str_mv Inglés
language_invalid_str_mv Inglés
dc.relation.none.fl_str_mv Latin American Policy, 2026, 27(1)
https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.29042591
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
rights_invalid_str_mv Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
dc.format.none.fl_str_mv application/pdf
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv John Wiley & Son
publisher.none.fl_str_mv John Wiley & Son
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv reponame:O2, repositorio institucional de la UOC
instname:Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC)
instname_str Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC)
reponame_str O2, repositorio institucional de la UOC
collection O2, repositorio institucional de la UOC
repository.name.fl_str_mv
repository.mail.fl_str_mv
_version_ 1869403774279221249
score 15,812429

Similares en LA Referencia