Uber: Crap/Not-Crap?

[frogwoman]

Why not?

Because they are unlicensed. So you could be getting in a car with anyone.

 

[beesonthewhatnow]

Cant be very safe for women i wouldnt have thought.

When you book a car you get a picture of the driver, their name, access to others users rating of that driver, plus the make, colour and registration number of their car.

If you can make a taxi service safer than that I'm all ears.

 

[joustmaster]

Because they are unlicensed. So you could be getting in a car with anyone.

You get their name, photo, and car registration, before you get in. And their bank account is registered with Uber.
So I don't think its like getting in a car with a stranger.

 

[beesonthewhatnow]

Because they are unlicensed. So you could be getting in a car with anyone.

No idea what it's like in other places but AFAIK here in Birmingham an Uber driver has to have the same license/registration as any other private hire cab.

Edit:

• What do I need to sign-up to partner with Uber in Birmingham?
  At the time of onboarding, you will need to bring with you all up-to-date legally required documents.
  
  For yourself this includes:
  1. Valid driver’s license
     
     
  2. Driver license counterpart (2 digit code must match the license)
     
     
  3. Birmingham City Council Private Hire Driver License
  For your vehicle you will also need to bring:
  1. Birmingham Private Hire Vehicle License
     
     
  2. Insurance Certificate to use your vehicle as a private hire driver
     
     
  3. V5 Logbook

 

[joustmaster]

that feels safer than a black cab, to me...

 

[butchersapron]

Because they are unlicensed. So you could be getting in a car with anyone.

The regulate themselves. Like a proper market. Or mincabs I think they have to do the same checks as black cab drivers: see this.

I think the minicab/black cab thing may be important here.

 

[maomao]

They've beaten the competition off in London by giving the drivers more freedom to do what they want and far less dead mileage than other firms. The rates were much lower but that's ok when you're constantly busy and getting paid for 80-90% of the petrol you're using (it can be under 50% at more traditional firms sometimes). This meant that they had the most drivers by far and could offer a better service than anyone else. Add on the black cab drivers regular protests which gave them more publicity than they could ever buy and they managed to grow an amazing amount in a very short time.

However they seem to have now flooded their circuit (in London at least) and the driver to work ratio is far too high for drivers to make the money they were making 6 months ago. A lot of drivers are leaving, or splitting their time between Uber and other firms. 6 months ago it looked like they were going to eat the London private hire industry alive but it seems that they're running into the same old problems albeit on a much larger scale.

 

[beesonthewhatnow]

The impression I get here in Birmingham is that rather than lots of new drivers suddenly appearing on the scene because of Uber, it's more a case of drivers leaving the traditional cab firms. So there aren't any more cars in total, there are just more Uber cars.

 

[butchersapron]

Are all these protests just based on greed or something? Or is there a real harmful material effect that its having?

 

[maomao]

The impression I get here in Birmingham is that rather than lots of new drivers suddenly appearing on the scene because of Uber, it's more a case of drivers leaving the traditional cab firms. So there aren't any more cars in total, there are just more Uber cars.

It's definitely that way in London. It takes up to 3 months to get a license to drive a minicab from the PCO anyway so it's not the kind of thing you can decide to do overnight. The effect on the other big firms is that driver recruitment has slowed down massively and they're having to put more effort into looking after their drivers. Overall Uber is pretty nasty when you look at the way they operate but there have definitely been positive side effects for London drivers.

 

[Teaboy]

Are all these protests just based on greed or something? Or is there a real harmful material effect that its having?

Well you know the answer to this.

But in London it's very damaging. The amount of minicabs on the roads has risen massively over the last couple of years, this is very bad for any number of reasons. Then there are the black cabs, now people may not care for them, but they have to do the knowledge and they have their fares set by tfl whereas all uber drivers have to do is own a smart phone and a Prius. It's hardly a level playing field.

The situation has got so bad that even that flag waiving capitalist Boris Johnson is worried:

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/3288ac4a-fb17-11e4-9fe6-00144feab7de.html#axzz3eARCSIQb

 

[Sea Star]

there are other places than London in existence. Crazy, but true.

prove it you conspiraloon!!

 

[beesonthewhatnow]

The amount of minicabs on the roads has risen massively over the last couple of years, this is very bad for any number of reasons.

What reasons?

Then there are the black cabs, now people may not care for them, but they have to do the knowledge and they have their fares set by tfl whereas all uber drivers have to do is own a smart phone and a Prius. It's hardly a level playing field.

While I have the utmost respect for anyone that can learn The Knowledge is it not something that technology is replacing? Is it needed in an age of satnavs and Google?

 

[ska invita]

if i get an Uber cab, will they take me where i want to go by the quickest route, or will they undertake a Tolkien-esque journey to find a horde of treasure at the end in the way that every black cab i take in London does?

'Oh, that Euston Station, you should have said Guv...' robbing cunts.

a female friend of mine who occassionaly gets stranded at night has been using uber a fair bit and has been asking the drivers what they think of uber - unanimously those cabbies who are on it say that as a result of it they have been getting more work and are getting better paid. so they are for it. so she tells me.

the difference in price is shocking - less than half price it would seem.

 

[beesonthewhatnow]

a female friend of mine who occassionaly gets stranded at night has been using uber a fair bit and has been asking the drivers what they think of uber - unanimously those cabbies who are on it say that as a result of it they have been getting more work and are getting better paid. so they are for it.

One driver I was talking to said it was the flexibility that made it so attractive. Rather than having to log on for a minimum 8 hour shift with his old company he could just work when he wanted. Meant he could go do a few jobs, stop to pick the kids up from school, pick up another couple of fares, then go do his shopping, then another fare and so on.

 

[butchersapron]

Are all these protests just based on greed or something? Or is there a real harmful material effect that its having?

 

[ska invita]

sometimes i could really do with a taxi - but theyre so expensive i usually end up taking 2hrs worth of busses
uber brings taxis back into a realistic price range....im even thinking of getting a smart phone purely for this purpose!
look forward to reading the rest of the thread...

 

[ska invita]

Are all these protests just based on greed or something? Or is there a real harmful material effect that its having?

my impression its a bit like the guilds complaining against non-guild workers back in the late middle ages... but i really dont know... waiting to see what urban says!

 

[beesonthewhatnow]

Are all these protests just based on greed or something? Or is there a real harmful material effect that its having?

Well, I guess if you're a black cab driver seeing less income then you'd say it's a harmful effect.

 

[J Ed]

It's a shame because the technology could be potentially used for a lot of good. Imagine a version of uber ran by the workers.

 

[Teaboy]

What reasons?


While I have the utmost respect for anyone that can learn The Knowledge is it not something that technology is replacing? Is it needed in an age of satnavs and Google?

The reasons have already been outlined, but London (and yes this time I did reference London in my post) roads are utterly choked with traffic, more travel by minicab instead of tube, train or bus is only going to make the traffic a lot worse and the knock on effect to business and the environment. London air is horrific and that's without the issues surrounding road safety for cyclists, basically we need far far fewer journeys by road.

I find it hard to believe that there is a City in the world where more minicabs is a sane public transport solution.

With regard to Sat navs, I don't know whether they are better then the knowledge but the point is it's clearly not a level playing when some people have to have it and others can do the job on their first day in the City, never having heard of anywhere.

 

[Idris2002]

With regard to Sat navs, I don't know whether they are better then the knowledge but the point is it's clearly not a level playing when some people have to have it and others can do the job on their first day in the City, never having heard of anywhere.

One of my brothers was invited to a wedding in Donegal a few years back, and had to travel there from Mayo. The person he got a lift with said to him and the other members of the party "it's alright lads, we don't need a map, I've got Satnav". By midnight they were half way up the side of an unidentified mountain. . .

 

[Teaboy]

One of my brothers was invited to a wedding in Donegal a few years back, and had to travel there from Mayo. The person he got a lift with said to him and the other members of the party "it's alright lads, we don't need a map, I've got Satnav". By midnight they were half way up the side of an unidentified mountain. . .

How did he manage that? There's only about 4 roads in Mayo.

 

[Idris2002]

How did he manage that? There's only about 4 roads in Mayo.

Don't make me post Foster & Allen again, boy.

 

[camouflage]

One of my brothers was invited to a wedding in Donegal a few years back, and had to travel there from Mayo. The person he got a lift with said to him and the other members of the party "it's alright lads, we don't need a map, I've got Satnav". By midnight they were half way up the side of an unidentified mountain. . .

I um... I did't think there were any mountains in Ireland...

eta: turns out there are loads, place is choc full of the things. Basically Ireland is the Himalayas of the Irish Sea.

 

[Idris2002]

Spoiler: OT youtube vid

 

[beesonthewhatnow]

The reasons have already been outlined, but London (and yes this time I did reference London in my post) roads are utterly choked with traffic, more travel by minicab instead of tube, train or bus is only going to make the traffic a lot worse and the knock on effect to business and the environment. London air is horrific and that's without the issues surrounding road safety for cyclists, basically we need far far fewer journeys by road.

I find it hard to believe that there is a City in the world where more minicabs is a sane public transport solution.

Well, the question here then is where Uber customers are coming from. Are the low prices attracting people who would otherwise drive their own private car? Or are they taking custom away from the bus/train/tube? The former would presumably be a good thing, the latter not.

With regard to Sat navs, I don't know whether they are better then the knowledge but the point is it's clearly not a level playing when some people have to have it and others can do the job on their first day in the City, never having heard of anywhere.

It's not a case of a level playing field, rather is something an outdated way of doing things. Do we need the traditional black cab anymore?

 

[Teaboy]

Well, the question here then is where Uber customers are coming from. Are the low prices attracting people who would otherwise drive their own private car? Or are they taking custom away from the bus/train/tube? The former would presumably be a good thing, the latter not.


It's not a case of a level playing field, rather is something an outdated way of doing things. Do we need the traditional black cab anymore?

Its a case of the latter, driving into and around London in your own car is prohibitive for a number of reasons not least the lack of and high cost of parking. Anyway, traffic wise and pollution wise it matters not if the car you're sat in is your own or a minicab, as many people as possible should be on public transport or ideally bikes / shank's but that's not always viable.

Do we need the black cab anymore? Well there needs to be some regulation without a doubt, the black cab model may be outdated but a free for all is not the solution for London and I suspect that will be the case for elsewhere as well.

 

[Teaboy]

I um... I did't think there were any mountains in Ireland...

Don't say that to anyone from Mayo, they're very proud of their diamond / pyramid mountain thing.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croagh_Patrick

You'd be safer taking the piss out of the pope then you would be criticising their hill.

 

[beesonthewhatnow]

Anyway, traffic wise and pollution wise it matters not if the car you're sat in is your own or a minicab

Of course it matters. One minicab in constant use is far better than several private cars being unused for a large proportion of the time.

Do we need the black cab anymore? Well there needs to be some regulation without a doubt, the black cab model may be outdated but a free for all is not the solution for London and I suspect that will be the case for elsewhere as well.

Uber isn't a free for all though. Cars and drivers are regulated in exactly the same way traditional minicabs are.