Uber, Lyft, etc.

Echoes

Echoes

O.G.
Aug 8, 2008
10,633
548
#1
OK, so what's the deal here?

Numerous stories documenting issues with both. Court orders blocking their services which in many cases have been defied. They've apparently attacked each other in some places hijacking each other's rides. More than one case of a driver attacking passengers. In at least one city, traditional cab services have seen substantial business losses.

Has anyone used them? Is there any advantage? Fares lower?
 
#4
Word in the headlines is that Uber is suspending operations in Nevada.

I'm not in an area that they would be of use, so I have no first hand knowledge. From what I've read over the last few weeks though is that they have some rather serious ethics issues with both management and drivers.
 
#5
I've only tried uber once and I've stopped since. I like that there's an app for it and I can see what drivers are around but when I request for one and one "responded" the amount of time it took him to get to me kept getting delayed--at least I got msgs regarding that

than, the driver input my destination on gps, whatever

didn't get me there any faster than a taxi would, actually..

and bill total was 3x because of prime time

sooooo

I keep taking taxis now because tbh, locations I'm at it's very easy to hail one on the street; I never call for one and, they get me there faster! of course I tend to tip generously when they do and tell them so

funny thing is once I was trying to get to the dentist during my lunch hour and I found a cab waiting on the curb w/o passenger; I thought sweet. well, turns out it was a cab but he also used uber and was waiting for someone who request it..who turns out to be a client I know so she let me in on her ride back to her office which is on the way to the dentist and he charged her via uber and I paid via square

I don't think it makes any difference for him but I thought that was interesting way to pick up fares if there's no bites on the streets

biggest problem for uber and lyft and what makes it "affordable" is that they aren't regulated the same as taxis. supposedly they get checked, the drivers, but they're hiring them off the pages of craigslist (nothing wrong with that, I got an offer from gucci that matched my salary but unfortunately am going through series six) and if I had to guess they don't do extensive since they're hired as contract workers 1099 versus w2 forms

there's been quite a few stories about uber drivers that have been not so great; like grabbing a customers phone and throwing it on the ground (dunno why?!)

and regulators would love for any reason to be able to call them out on it because taxi orgs are breathing down their neck no doubt; after all the hoops they jumped through and $$ paid, to have to share the market with uber and lyft who hasn't gone through the same

even made an app to hail taxis but I don't think it's helping them out so much
 
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#6
Uber is the best! I find them to be cleaner, more reliable, nicer vehicles and often times more affordable than taxis

Anyone complaining about surcharges agreed to the price. Twice. And had the opportunity to cancel their ride before a car even showed up

Also I recently relocated to a place where it is not easy to get taxis on the street so Uber is a life saver!
 
#9
I read the whole NYT article

First and foremost it's appalling that a woman was raped by an Uber driver in New Dehli. Reprehensible. No words....

My only question is how many unreported rapes by taxis / auto rickshaws / private drivers have happened in India? Sad that I'm even asking but I'd be shocked if the other 3 major forms of private driving services have squeaky clean records

Spain sounds like it boils down to most of the American city challenge complaints (regulation of taxi medallions) & Thailand sounds like the problem of lack of insurance/registration probably also extends far into the private sector

As someone who left an American city where Uber succeeds where taxis are abundant bc the weather is so regularly terrible that people would rather use an app to call a ride than to stand outdoors to hail one & relocated to another American city where Uber succeeds bc there's a general lack of taxi supply given the regular demand for rides (my only good solution pre-Uber was to walk however far to a high end hotel to find a taxi), I'm very much in favor of a startup that's disrupting the supply / demand economics of driving

It's a shame that Uber is not as successful - and even harmful / predatory - in other areas of the world. But I've seen it work beautifully for different reasons in different US cities and am happy to have the service ❤️
 
#10
I've only used Lyft and they've been great. The fares were cheaper, the drivers were communicative, so I was able to request one while in the venue and be notified as they pulled up. No need to leave the venue, try to hail one or call their main line and wait outside until they finally got there. I could also read user reviews and leave my own. No need for cash or to even exchange a CC. After your ride is over, you get a msg to confirm your ride and your registered CC in file gets debited.
The issue is that most taxi companies are regulated on a city/cty level, so cab companies are local and deal with local regulations. Uber is worldwide and their drivers are covered under their insurance umbrellas as independent contractors, so it's a different model with different regulations. Of course existing cab companies are going to get upset over it, but that doesn't mean they have the right to shut Uber/Lyft's operations down.
 
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