What does everyone think about the Uber situation? (Tampa: taxi driver, live in)

[spbbound]

Originally Posted by VanHalen5150

Actually unless I am going to get hammered, I drive...

And yes, taking a cab or uber to a rays game does not make you a hipster, it makes you LAME... uber both ways from a game likely costs more than parking, so yeah, that's lame. I usually stop somewhere on the way home, so if I was to uber or cab, that's 2 fares, lame...

Uber from my house to Fergs next to the trop is $14 each way. Trop parking if you have less than four in the car is $20. The time it takes to get home from the stadium parking lot after a game, versus walking back over to Central and catching an Uber, is about an additional 30 to 40 minutes due to the traffic backups from funneling all the cars out two small exits and to two onramps. My time is worth more than $8 per 40 minutes, so I come out ahead taking Uber. Cheaper parking in downtown adds another 30 minutes from waiting for the shuttle bus.

Originally Posted by VanHalen5150

It ABSOLUELY does... less insurance, no background checks, no bonding, etc. All of those things the normal taxi companies have to abide by cost money...

Ever try to get a uber on new years? See prices in the hundreds of dollars for a ride? That is illegal under normal taxi company regulations...

It's not the same background check you pay $10 for... trust me, lol. And "insurance is cheap"... lol

Yes, I already addressed surge pricing in my post, but you apparently didn't read that. Ever try to get a cab on NYE? You can't. So if you find uber's price unreasonable and CHOOSE not to take them, how has anything changed? You can decide how much you want to spend to get home, and if Uber is more than that, then you have no ride from them or a cab. If Uber is less than that, now you have a ride option where you didn't before.

Ever take a cab from South Tampa to another destination within Tampa's "zone" pricing and have them run the meter anyway? Yeah, that's illegal but cabs do it anyway. Ever try to get a pickup from a cab in a 'bad' area of Tampa? They will tell you they're coming, since they have to legally, but never show up. So yeah, that's effectively illegal too.

Regarding background checks, it's based on economies of scale. A local cab company getting a thorough background check is going to be a lot more expensive than a company the size of Uber ordering them from one source due to volume. That's the same reason why I pay $10 for a very thorough background check that includes social media search and screen; my company has a lot of sales reps and we do a lot of checks, just as Uber does for markets where that is what's agreed upon, like South Carolina.

Originally Posted by VanHalen5150

That's cause hipsters are lame, and i'm in my 30's... not old, technically proficient. I have nothing per se against uber, but they should have to abide by the same background checks and insurance regs as everyone else...

Like I already posted, they already do in states that have been willing to work with them instead of against them, and, magically, the price is still cheaper than cabs, imagine that. How could that possibly be given your knowledge of insurance and background check pricing which should make such a situation impossible? The only reason they're "illegal" in markets like Hillsborough is because of back room politicking with people like Victor Crist. Uber is happy to operate under suitable regulation but that's not in the interests of long term politicians.

[SeaSpur]

Originally Posted by mrviking

Great, lets remove all the rules and regs and let them die a slow death. Or perhaps they will compete or the $%#@ hits the fan and crap starts to happen with stories in the news and people start demanding the more regulations are needed because of the customers are being attached and mistreated. We won't know until we get on a level paying field. Something tells me you would not be singing this tune if you were a taxi cab driver. But since this is not your life's work its ok, to destroy someone elses livelihood with uneven treatment.

Of course not. I'd quit and get a job with Uber.

[SeaSpur]

Originally Posted by VanHalen5150

It ABSOLUELY does... less insurance, no background checks, no bonding, etc. All of those things the normal taxi companies have to abide by cost money...

Uber does background checks and has multiple forms of insurance.

Do you think the taxi drivers go through Federal Top Secret clearance or something?

How much of the information you are spouting is researched and fact versus spewing at the mouth on a topic you aren't aware of or product you aren't familiar with?

Originally Posted by VanHalen5150

Actually unless I am going to get hammered, I drive...

So 4 or 5 drinks and you'll just drive instead? Most people don't realize they are hammered until the blue lights are behind them and they are asked to step out of their vehicle.

[MAniacTHW]

Originally Posted by SeaSpur

So 4 or 5 drinks and you'll just drive instead? Most people don't realize they are hammered until the blue lights are behind them and they are asked to step out of their vehicle.

The person you're arguing with doesn't leave their neighborhood. Anything else is too scary! So, a simply two block drive and they're home. Thus, taxis and Uber make no sense for them.

However, I will continue to say, once Uber has the same regulations that taxis are forced to use, then we can see which people prefer. There's a reason they can charge less.

[SeaSpur]

Originally Posted by MAniacTHW

The person you're arguing with doesn't leave their neighborhood. Anything else is too scary! So, a simply two block drive and they're home. Thus, taxis and Uber make no sense for them.

However, I will continue to say, once Uber has the same regulations that taxis are forced to use, then we can see which people prefer. There's a reason they can charge less.

Fair enough, however I challenge that the current system of fees/taxing/registration/etc for the industry is largely bloated and unnecessary...an inflated stream of revenue for the county that is likely unnecessary. Couple that with the decrease in DUI incidents removing a large revenue stream for the county/city, court systems, and insurance companies- I can see why Uber doesn't want to participate in an unfair (and possibly endless) battle with that beast. They background check, they have insurance, and they have operated until now (and grown extremely quickly with literally zero micro-management) very well.

When all is said, I still believe if you put apples to apples- Uber would destroy the taxi industry miserably. The taxi industry is too far behind in technology, customer service, and public opinion. Those things aren't changed overnight...especially not when we aren't talking about a particular company, but an industry in general.

[tinytrump]

free enterprise go for it

[earslikeacat]

The Uber app was a huge headache for me. A lot of typing info onto my phone, only to have it fail. Tried it 3 times within a week and never got anywhere after a bunch of typing. I live in the MSP metro area. How drunks can type all that info is beyond me. When I drank i certainly couldn.t type on a keyboard from the double-vision I experienced while imbibing.

[SeaSpur]

Originally Posted by earslikeacat

The Uber app was a huge headache for me. A lot of typing info onto my phone, only to have it fail. Tried it 3 times within a week and never got anywhere after a bunch of typing. I live in the MSP metro area. How drunks can type all that info is beyond me. When I drank i certainly couldn.t type on a keyboard from the double-vision I experienced while imbibing.

Typing?

You open the app...it knows your location...and simply tap "Request" then wait for your ride to arrive. No typing required unless you have to confirm surge pricing (which would only be 2 characters).

...and you're positive you weren't drunk and in the wrong app?

[OptimusPrime69]

I use Uber very frequently here in Miami and love it. The Uber app is so simple to use, it's so reliable at anytime...whether it's 4 in the morning or in the afternoon, I have secured a ride within 5 minutes of submitting my request..... No money is exchanged, no tipping, it's half the price, it's a dream.
The taxi industry does not like Uber because quite frankly the whole taxi industry is a freakin dinosaur. They're outdated in their use of technology, they're not convenient, they're expensive, the cars themselves usually smell like urine or vomit and or just generally old and gross, and the drivers suck too.

Uber on the otherhand is basically doing everything the taxi industry is not doing. So screw the taxi industry for not keeping up with the times and being competitive. They deserve to be put out of business.

T

[TRosa]

Uber, my experiences with them I hope their model continues as is and if so, I will continue to make use of their services. There were regulation discussions in my area as well, I'm not sure where the talks stand at this point, but, so far so good on the Uber side of the legal front.

Once I left my cell in the uber driver's car, I called them an hour or so later when I realized this and the driver had no problem coming back to my home from another county where he was at that time to return my phone. After he handed the phone to me and apologized for what wasn't his fault, he was about to drive off, not asking for a fee. I was like WOW! he did this free of charge, I of course, gave him money for his time, it was my mistake, I didn't feel he should pay for my error. I imagine like everything else you will find good and not so good situations come up with either service, but, I so far have been quite pleased, especially with the prices. Where I am so far the price has been way less than half of what I would have paid to get from one point to another, it will depend on the type of Uber service and location as to pricing.