Most of the people I've talked to in my age group (mid twenties to early thirties) adamantly avoid taking a taxi whenever possible. The reasons why have been beaten to death by now, but they include:
- Uber's show up on time, and I can track them using an app. Before Uber, I had to call a cab company, hope someone would answer, be told I'd have to wait 45 minutes to an hour, then hope the taxi would actually show up.
- For almost all of the Uber's I've taken, if the car wasn't on the newer end, it was at least clean. I've never been in a taxi and thought "Wow! They really take care of these things." I usually get out feeling like I need a shower.
- The rating system (which goes both ways, your driver rates you as well) helps ensure that they want to provide a good experience for you. Taxi drivers have no motivation - most people won't call a hotline to report and issue vs just choosing a star rating on their phone.
- The price is reasonable, and I get an estimate before leaving. I hate how taxies just go without any idea of what you'll be paying. It's even worse when you're in a city you don't know, and you're unsure if they're taking the best route.
- Most taxi drivers I've met have been incredibly rude and impatient, and then expect a 20% tip. On top of that, I've had a bunch of them lie and say they don't accept credit cards after the trip is complete, even though there is a sign that says they are legally required to. "The machine is broken" isn't a valid excuse.
- With Uber, I don't have to worry about them awkwardly watching me decide how much to tip, it's included in the price. I don't even have to worry about figuring out how to pay! I just get out and go and it's automatically charged to my card.
I'm surprised when I hear that people are in favor of saving taxies. Yes, Uber and Lyft should probably be a bit more regulated. But taxies were doing so many things almost comically wrong for so long, it's not surprising a competitor has come along and been successful.
Currently staying in Manhattan - why wait for an Uber if you can simply flag down a cab?
And all of them have the CC terminals in them now, when did you last get one without?
My last Uber experience here was shit btw, the location near the WTC memorial was slightly off, the driver would not drive over where I told him to - I had my whole family incl. a toddler in a stroller. Fuck him then, flagged down a cab and off we went.
The point isn't that taxis don't have credit card terminals. It is that people often state that the terminal is nonfunctional, defeating the purpose. In Baltimore, this was the norm; I suspect Manhattan is better.
They are required in lots of places, but people don't always follow the law. It's not surprising to hear the old "the machine is broken, need cash" excuse.
I never really understood that. A cab driver told me that once, so I told him that I was leaving without paying. Even if he wasn't lying, I accept no responsibility for their broken equipment.
Not sure about the law in other places, but in Boston that's too bad for them. You can just get out of the cab without paying if their machine doesn't work.
The issue of taxi drivers lying and saying their machine is broken when it isn't is so rampant they even cover it in the FAQ you linked to!
>What if a driver says the system is not working?
The passenger should note the medallion number and go to 311 Online. Drivers are permitted to work with a broken system for up to 48 hours as long as they have reported the problem and are awaiting repair. Almost all (90%) system repairs must be completed within six hours.
And there isn't much you can do about it except threaten to complain and hope the taxi driver relents and lets you use it.
You can also just get out of the cab. I usually throw em any cash if I have it on me but not my fault you just drove me to the airport and forgot to mention your card machine doesn't work.
I guess it can go either way depending on the situation. A good deal of my experience with this is actually in the Philly area. In NYC, if there are a bunch of cabs around already and you're looking to leave asap then it might not be a bad choice.
Definitely YMMV. I've had mostly good experiences with taxis in NYC, but I've had some extremely bad Taxi experiences in San Francisco, Chicago, LA, and D.C. The major difference is that in your situation, you could easily report your driver for failing to meet at the pickup location--If them not agreeing to meet a specific location is a problem their rating will eventually filter them out. With Taxi's there is no accountability for bad drivers so they continue in the Taxi system.
Not sure why you're being downvoted, you make a good point. The reasons Uber is popular in San Francisco and other cities (hard to hail a cab, pay by CC, etc.) are moot in NYC. Uber advertises that they are 15% cheaper, but that's without surge pricing.
Even in Chicago it's often easier to flag a cab. And I've found that taxis drive significantly more confidently in traffic (esp along the more well-worn routes), usually getting me to my destination more quickly.
>why wait for an Uber if you can simply flag down a cab?
This is a big factor. I can cite an example in India. Mumbai has loads of taxis that don't try to scam you (generally), always go by the standard meter rate and are reasonably well-maintained. If you are on a street you will definitely have at least one in sight and ready to go. I do not feel like calling an Uber and waiting.
On the other hand, Bangalore has almost zero taxis. What it does have are auto-rickshaws who will try to scam you at every opportunity, overcharge by at least 2x and generally fight and harass you. They also refuse to take you if they feel like it. The result is that I always call an Uber in Bangalore, even if I have to wait 15 minutes (worst case).
I think Uber definitely has an edge but I think it can be easily wiped out if the city has good taxi drivers.
Uber & co are good for tourists who don't want to get scammed. Locals might not be scammed, but it's very common for the tourists to get scammed. Also helps that you can enter addresses without having to know the native language. It's not %100 but it's better than nothing!
>Uber and Lyft should probably be a bit more regulated
The reason behind the taxi situation now is _because_ it is regulated. Regulation never helps the end-consumers, it helps the big corporations hold out competition.
Also, at least in Germany, there's some responsibilities that official taxies have in exchange for their quasi-monopoly - transportation duty for example.
This is a double-edged sword as well when thinking about needing to drive a drunk, mentally ill or homeless person, but this is critical for elderly or disabled people. My wife was once refused transportation by a taxi driver when she had just to go two kilometers from the airport with a broken leg (granted, shitty situation for both sides here) - and she got compensation and another driver from the taxi central immediately.
While I'm with you on better regulation, blind deregulation has too much collateral damage IMHO.
The problem with the U.S. is that there tends not to be a complete absence of regulation, but regulation that is often poorly designed and/or executed. It's sort of why for decades the American government has spent huge amounts on healthcare, despite politicians bashing the notion of universal healthcare at every turn. I definitely agree that the solution should be better regulation.
Okay, so instead of regulation, let's empower the drivers instead. Create a new employment status in between W-2 and 1099 for ridesharing/gig economy workers who depend upon those jobs as their main source of income. Have Uber and Lyft provide them with social insurance for vehicles and personal health, either directly or through taxes.
I'd rather dismantle the "normal" employee status and give all citizens health insurance, etc. Why should I be treated worse by the government just for being self-employed?
I am fine with that as well. Making health insurance the province of employers as a way to incentivize hires is a relic of the New Deal era. Divorcing health care mandates from employment is a good idea.
I am. Regulation forces barrier of entry to the market higher than it would be naturally, and the specifics of the regulation is largely influenced by the current big players already in the market. This means less competition, higher prices and lower quality.
Exactly what the regulated taxi-business has lead to: The current taxi drivers does not have to care about keeping their taxi clean etc.. they don't have any competition anyway who can take their customers away - well until a number of free-market entrepreneurs entered the space and ignored the regulations, and thus the quality, competition and transparency significantly increased while price decreased. And for the big corporations this was bad. But for the end consumer it was good.
There's another reason I've wondered about. It's not politically correct. All the Ubers I've used had white or sometimes Hispanic-American drivers. But taxis have all (except for Portland) been either African (esp ~ethiopian), Palestinian, some region of India I can't place, etc. They're dominated by recent immigrants.
So I wonder if average young white couple on their way to dinner or whatever, simply likes the white-driver experience.
I have noticed a definite racial tinge to the conversation when people talk about preferring their Uber drivers. Even if it's not overt racism, there is unconscious bias at play.
I have also noticed that when I get matched with a black Uber or Lyft driver they tend to have a low-ish rating (4.6-4.8 whereas most white drivers I get are 4.8-5.0) but I have not personally found drivers of any race to be any less skilled or courteous.
Messy for Uber? Unless they've been discriminating against drivers by race themselves they're in the clear.
If driver race-rating data was ever publicized it'll be most damning against society in general, I think. I'd wager that Uber's passenger base is substantially more discriminatory than the company can hope to be on its most evil day.
The 5-star rating system is cover for a lot of things that I think everyone knows to some extent but doesn't enjoy thinking about.
Personally, I appreciate when my driver is fluent in English in case some sort of specific direction is required (which has happened before). This probably results in a noticeable racial bias.
I don't know why, but Asian drivers have always dominated private taxi drivers in London, so it makes sense that most Uber drivers are as well. Its also not clear why so many black cab drivers are white; I wonder why that is?
It is, in fact, extremely politically correct to insinuate that the young white couple is driven (heh) by racial bias. But in San Francisco lots of Uber or Lyft (I mainly use the latter) drivers are black, Indian, or Asian.
In NYC I've had uber drivers from all over the globe (they love to tell stories about their home countries!), I can't remember the last time I've had a white uber driver. There's quite a few that used to be cabbies or worked for private cab companies. Maybe that's just NYC, though.
In the city I live in there are perhaps a few more white uber drivers than there are for taxis, but not by much. Most of the Uber drivers I've gotten could easily have been taxi drivers if you were profiling them. Many uber drivers are also former or even current taxi drivers, as well.
On another interesting axis like this, I do not believe I have ever had a female taxi driver, but I've had several female uber drivers.
This discussion always suffers from anecdata problems, since each city's taxi regime tends to be different in a bunch of different ways, and the people who drive for uber and services like it are very much subject to local circumstance.
Another awesome benefit of using Uber I didn't realize until I started using it: you get a detailed invoice of each trip you take on your phone, instead of having to ask for a paper one to the driver, wait for it to be printed and then actually make sure you don't lose it. And that's not all! Uber's invoice includes a map of your route, so you'd be able to see if the uber drive "tried to scam you" by taking a longer road or by making a bunch of unnecessary turns. This is incredibly useful as it's a common practice (at least in my side of the world) with taxi drivers and tourists, and of course Uber drivers won't try to pull it off as they know you'll notice, even if you're not from there. One day our driver made a bunch of mistakes (he admitted as much) driving us home and we ended up with a, say, 20% extra rate for that ride than we'd normally get. This was in Mexico City btw. On the email invoice I could clearly see the funny way we took. I replied to Uber, explained the situation, and within 48 hours they reimbursed me for a chunk of the cost of the ride. If that isn't an absolutely delightful experience overall, I don't know what is. I know Uber as a company is guilty of some predatory behavior to drivers, ignores current legislation for profit and they'll put all their drivers out of a job as soon as they can get their whole fleet to drive itself. But dammit, if they're growing so much and they have so much of support is because the user experience is bliss.
Wait I was under the impression that Uber and Lyft eliminated the ability to scam someone by driving around simply by making it a fixed rate to the destination once you're in the vehicle. Whats the reasoning for allowing someone to go off course?
It's not a fixed rate, there's a time and distance component. The time component is presumably to account for the drivers time wasted when traffic is high.
You can get an estimate easily, but the final price for an UberX is a function of distance and time, just like a taxi.
I have had a few occasions where my driver's taken the wrong route. Not intentionally, I don't think, but a wrong turn here or there in a one-way system can really screw it up.
Each time that's happened, I leave a not-5-star rating. Within a few hours, Uber have sent me an email. I reply to that explaining the route, they take a look at the map, and every single time I've received either the difference in cost for a regular trip (if it's one I can show I've taken multiple times), or a full refund.
There are sometimes UberPool deals, where they'll offer a fixed price to go from and to anywhere within a certain region.
As pinaceae says below, a few of these are non-issues. NYC taxies always have working credit card machines, are relatively clean, drivers are usually polite enough.
In my experience (Manhattan), all taxi services have about the same service, and about the same pricing, with some special variations.
Anecdotally, Most people I know have Uber, Lyft, and Gett (a third service not mentioned in this article) on their phone. When they need to go somewhere, they request a ride on multiple services, usually taking the one with the fastest pickup lowest rate. But, at any point in the process, if there is a taxi driving by then they will just hail it down and cancel the ride requests.
Personally, I will default to the Gett $10 below 110st deal, then check Uber and Lyft. Sometimes I will take a taxi if it's there. Since the real benefit of taxi request services is not waiting, if taking a taxi would be faster, then that is what I will default to.
When is the last time that you have been in a Manhattan taxi?
I travel to NYC a few times a month and tend to prefer yellow cabs out of habit. But I definitely would not consider them clean when comparing Uber. Maybe it is because of the "black car" lineage of Uber, but the car is generally spotless, not sticky and relatively new. On the other hand, the yellow cabs look outwardly new and clean but on the inside are torn up.
The only reason I've ever heard for saving taxis is that they paid for medallions and should benefit to the exclusion of people who weren't allowed to buy medallions.
I'm happy to let their graft payments go to waste. Those who collaborate with such rules don't deserve our protection in the end.
There may be a cultural aspect, too. When I was a kid, taxis were for rich people or businessmen. Even if I can afford it now, it just feels like an extravagance to take a taxi. Of course, the lack of price transparency means this bias is never going to be eroded. In my mind, a taxi is going to cost $50 for even the shortest trip, and so I never even bother.
* Uber drivers often have no idea how to get around. In my city, they're often suburbanites who have come in to drive the drinking crowd to three or four entertainment strips. Venture outside of that and they don't even know where they are.
* The worst experiences I've ever had being driven by anyone in any context have been in Uber. My theory is that because people are in their own personal cars, they feel justified driving just like they do when they're alone. Whatever the cause, I have had some truly dangerous drivers.
* I don't necessarily need or desire a complete detailed history of every ride I've ever taken. There are huge potential privacy concerns.
* Turn-by-turn largely takes care of this, and most drivers I've had are amenable to a friendly suggestion of, "go this way, it's a little easier."
* I've never had a problem. Definitely have had more crazy / dangerous taxi cab drivers - especially in Florida, whatever that anecdotal point may be worth.
* Being able to opt in/out would be nice for data collection purposes. But I think many people would appreciate that paper trail, especially for business purposes.
These are fair responses, but I'd like to push back on the idea that turn-by-turn is a suitable replacement for experience. In practice, an Uber driver relying on GPS in a neighborhood he's unfamiliar with is a driver who is making a lot of wrong turns, using streets that have better alternatives, and sometimes even attempting to use routes that are closed.
On the other hand, it's sometimes a problem that you 'trust' the taxi driver to know the best route, since there's no guarantee they're actually using it (if you're in a strange city or going somewhere unfamiliar). I honestly prefer they use a GPS because at least then I know the source of their choices. Sometimes that means it takes a little longer to get there, but I'm comfortable with that tradeoff. YMMV.
Agree, it works in some places, but in dense cities with a lot of driving and traffic idiosyncracies a driver who's reliant on turn-by-turn is frustrating as all hell.
It's part of why I've started using Ubers a lot less - their driver churn seems high and there are a lot of new drivers who just don't know the lay of the land, and here in NYC that's pretty critical.
A driver leaning on a GPS unit to get around is the difference between missing the Manhattan bridge on-ramp on the Brooklyn side 3 times in a row vs. getting back into Manhattan at a reasonable hour :P True story, that one.
no turn by turn gps usually causes them to blindly follow that without thinking. in places like Seattle there's a huge difference between GPS and actually knowing your way around. also paying someone to drive you somewhere kinda loses it's appeal once you have to tell them how to do it, especially if you are inebriated on your way home.
If you feel GPS does not take care of this to your satisfaction, then I hope you also don't get any new taxi cab drivers or ones that recently moved to the area, because they will also suffer from that problem, unless there's some special training most cabbies take to eliminate the need for GPS. I use turn-by-turn - or at least look at a map - even in places I know the best way to, because traffic, construction, or other unexpected developments may dictate going a different way, and looking at a map can help avoid unexpected surprises.
And if you're inebriated, there's much more value in getting someone else to drive you home than simply not having to tell them the best possible route. But sure, it's not great if you're paying someone and also needing to tell them how to do their job. But it sure beats the alternative of driving drunk or sleeping outside the bar.
>I don't necessarily need or desire a complete detailed history of every ride I've ever taken. There are huge potential privacy concerns.
I agree, I've wished Uber/Lyft would implement a feature where you can buy a ride for someone but guarantee that you wouldn't learn the endpoint (within e.g. some radius). Say, you justmet someone who did a favor for you and you want to return it, but in a way that doesn't reveal more information about them than they're comfortable giving.
While Uber drivers don't always know where to get around, the Uber app provides them directions, and many of them also use Google Maps/Waze. Having lived in far-out brooklyn for a year, cabs NEVER knew how to get there, and didn't want to figure out how, but an Uber has my address, and will be told exactly how to get there.
> - Most taxi drivers I've met have been incredibly rude and impatient, and then expect a 20% tip. On top of that, I've had a bunch of them lie and say they don't accept credit cards after the trip is complete, even though there is a sign that says they are legally required to. "The machine is broken" isn't a valid excuse.
I commented about this to a taxi driver once, and in a moment of surprising candidness, he told me that one reason this happens is because the taxi company he get dispatch from doesn't pay out credit card payments for something like a month and a half (obviously different companies and different cities will be different here), so drivers who are tight at bill time will insist on cash so they can make ends meet.
I asked an Uber driver and they said they get paid every 2 weeks or so.
The last two times I used a taxi in SF, the driver scanned my card using a Square Reader. I presume they are using their personal accounts to avoid some of the hassle of the official taxi card readers. I also presume that the taxi companies might not like that.
Having lived in London for a number of years before moving to NY in Jan, I have an intense, burning hatred of cab companies (whether it's the London black cab or New York's yellow cab). I will always, always use Lyft/Uber wherever possible. My reasons for hatred include:
- After arriving into JFK, I'd used up all my battery on the flight so decided, rather than wait to charge my phone at the airport, I'd get a local cab instead. The cab driver took me to Brooklyn.
We passed La Guardia.
After a heated argument, it still cost over 3x what it would've cost with Uber.
- Since I have a British accent, NY cabbies often assume I'm a tourist and will try and take the long way round (seriously, La Guardia?). I've had to correct them on more than one occasion about which route to take and they are always shocked when I start telling them which bridge to cross into the city or what street they should use.
- In London, I was out with some friends and one woman had missed the last tube home. Night buses from where we were wasn't an option, so we tried to hail a cab. After telling the driver where she needed to go, he told us to "fk off" and drove away. I requested an Uber for her and within 45 minutes, she was safely at home.
These are just highlights in the many terrible experiences of cabs, and my experience has been better with any ride sharing service. Why? Because customer ratings affect their ability to offer rides. Cab drivers have no such incentive, even if you call to complain with their medallion number. Unless the cab driver has done something illegal, I doubt anything happens.
One that's especially relevant in New York is that I never have to worry about a cab trying to get rid of me when they find out I'm going to an outer borough. It's technically illegal but that doesn't stop a lot of them from being shady, plus what are you really going to do? With Uber the driver already knows exactly where I'm going.
I knew Lyft was the underdog in NYC (compared to Uber), but they seem to be in real trouble according to this data. In my personal experience, my Uber drivers have seemed better trained than my Lyft drivers in NY, so for the most part I only take Lyft if they are offering me a special promotion. For example, I've had Lyft drivers who seemed confused with how to use their own app.
I've been in NYC for a week, and I've used all three services to get around when needed. Taxi is actually by far the easiest to get a ride on. The reason is being on the correct side of the street and for the car to be traveling in the direction you're headed is crucial.
Grabbing a Lyft or Uber may commit a driver to having to turn around the block, which can take several minutes, and in that time, you could have hailed half a dozen taxis.
I do wish Lyft and Uber would just tell me to cross the street for a faster pickup. In many cases, I could even walk a couple of blocks, and from the route on the map I even know exactly where to walk. But I cannot, because the driver would still go to the original location.
Or if the GPS guiding the driver to the location would take into account side-of-street so they come in on the right side in the first place. In jurisdictions where U-turns are legal (California) it's less of a problem, but often them taking a slightly later turn before they 'arrive' would get them to me faster than the fastest direct route and then finding a parking lot to turn around in.
"Taxi is actually by far the easiest to get a ride on."
Unless it's raining, 5PM (taxi shift swap time), a peak time (eg. bar closing time), or most places in the five boroughs that are not Manhattan below 96th street (but the green cabs help with that.)
Being a Queens resident who does not live on a main artery to Manhattan, Uber/Lyft every time.
There are so many cabs that I don't really see the need for this, and most cabs take Apple Pay now, so I've never really seen the point of this and the other one (is there another one? I think there is?).
If I was somewhere where there aren't a lot of cabs I'd probably just use Uber, it's cheaper and cleaner anyways.
I haven't tried Lyft yet because my credit card gives me %20 back for taking Uber. Also, average type people don't even know about Lyft. They hear about Uber from all the news coverage, but they don't mention Lyft. Uber is winning the marketing war with Lyft so effectively that it doesn't matter who is better. Now, the only reason I could ever see taking an analog taxi is if my phone was dead.
I'm curious about how you write "%20", instead of the more common "20%". It's the first time I see it, really. Is there any place in the world where writing the percentage sign before the number is common practice?
> the graphs on this page will continue to update as the TLC releases more data.
Interesting use of Highcharts to this effect, especially with the theming to match your other designs. Is it a good idea in the context of this article to have dynamic data though, as the conclusion might change over time?
In NYC (or at least in Manhattan), when taxis are readily available (non-extreme weather), Uber is 2x to 3x less convenient than taxi. When taxis aren't readily available i.e. extreme weather, Uber is 3x - 5x more expensive than taxi and still takes forever to get one.
I believe that Uber in NYC will remain a niche player. But I do appreciate some competition against the taxis.
I don't have any data to back up my anecdote, but here in Austin, Lyft seems to be much more popular than Uber, and both are more popular than taxis.
My friends and I all prefer Lyft as riders. This is due to equal if not higher availability, and limited surge pricing compared to Uber. Drivers have been pretty friendly as well.
I always ask the driver if they drive for both, and which they prefer. Every driver I've had has preferred Lyft due to it giving more back money back to the driver, a strong driver community, and simpler onboarding process.
Some of this could be due to city culture, where Austin seems to line up much more with Lyft's character than New York.
Same story in Boston, except that most of my friends still take Uber. I've had far better experiences riding with Lyft drivers and the drivers seem to enjoy working with Lyft a lot more.
Uber is my backup option now if there are no Lyfts available.
Here in Minneapolis, Lyft seems more popular among my crowd, but people still use "Uber" for the verb a lot. Like at least once a week I hear some variation on:
Person 1: "Are we ubering to the game tonight?"
Person 2: "Yeah, I'll call a lyft in like 10 minutes"
Which to me is really interesting from a linguistic standpoint. (Both that Uber became a verb so quick, and that it is becoming a generic term already). Incidentally, I've heard people say "lyfting" as well, but that always has referred to getting an actual Lyft, whereas "ubering" seems to refer to both just fine.
Lyft/Uber seem to split on the Friendly/Professional preference, so it makes sense to me that Uber would do better in cities like New York and Boston while Lyft does better in cities like Austin and Minneapolis.
I've heard many people say they like Uber because the drivers shut up and have nice cars. I've heard other people say they like Lyft because the drivers are friendly people in normal cars and it feels more like a friend giving you a ride.
Exactly: I use way2ride all the time to pay, and use it to hail when Uber has surge pricing on. It's especially useful for hailing while still inside your apartment.
My friend who lives in NYC now was telling me about this The taxi drivers themselves also have a medallion system which has severely been devalued for decades and since Uber is taking a piece of their cake, slowly and slowly they'll be phased out
One thing I like about taxis is the meter itself: If you're stuck in a traffic jam you can check the current price and decide if it's worth staying in the taxi or hopping out (after paying).
Is there any technical reason why Uber can't present a meter in the app that you can look at intermittently?
1) taxis can be more convenient for older people who are less tech-savvy and can't fully utilize smartphones (think seniors);
2) I'm not sure if you can request this on Uber, but some taxis are wheelchair accessible and they have the proper equipment for loading/unloading. You can try it with a minivan Uber but a taxi would be preferable in this case.
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[ 3.0 ms ] story [ 160 ms ] thread- Uber's show up on time, and I can track them using an app. Before Uber, I had to call a cab company, hope someone would answer, be told I'd have to wait 45 minutes to an hour, then hope the taxi would actually show up.
- For almost all of the Uber's I've taken, if the car wasn't on the newer end, it was at least clean. I've never been in a taxi and thought "Wow! They really take care of these things." I usually get out feeling like I need a shower.
- The rating system (which goes both ways, your driver rates you as well) helps ensure that they want to provide a good experience for you. Taxi drivers have no motivation - most people won't call a hotline to report and issue vs just choosing a star rating on their phone.
- The price is reasonable, and I get an estimate before leaving. I hate how taxies just go without any idea of what you'll be paying. It's even worse when you're in a city you don't know, and you're unsure if they're taking the best route.
- Most taxi drivers I've met have been incredibly rude and impatient, and then expect a 20% tip. On top of that, I've had a bunch of them lie and say they don't accept credit cards after the trip is complete, even though there is a sign that says they are legally required to. "The machine is broken" isn't a valid excuse.
- With Uber, I don't have to worry about them awkwardly watching me decide how much to tip, it's included in the price. I don't even have to worry about figuring out how to pay! I just get out and go and it's automatically charged to my card.
I'm surprised when I hear that people are in favor of saving taxies. Yes, Uber and Lyft should probably be a bit more regulated. But taxies were doing so many things almost comically wrong for so long, it's not surprising a competitor has come along and been successful.
Currently staying in Manhattan - why wait for an Uber if you can simply flag down a cab?
And all of them have the CC terminals in them now, when did you last get one without?
My last Uber experience here was shit btw, the location near the WTC memorial was slightly off, the driver would not drive over where I told him to - I had my whole family incl. a toddler in a stroller. Fuck him then, flagged down a cab and off we went.
YMMV
http://www.nyc.gov/html/tlc/html/passenger/passenger_creditc...
>What if a driver says the system is not working? The passenger should note the medallion number and go to 311 Online. Drivers are permitted to work with a broken system for up to 48 hours as long as they have reported the problem and are awaiting repair. Almost all (90%) system repairs must be completed within six hours.
And there isn't much you can do about it except threaten to complain and hope the taxi driver relents and lets you use it.
This is a big factor. I can cite an example in India. Mumbai has loads of taxis that don't try to scam you (generally), always go by the standard meter rate and are reasonably well-maintained. If you are on a street you will definitely have at least one in sight and ready to go. I do not feel like calling an Uber and waiting.
On the other hand, Bangalore has almost zero taxis. What it does have are auto-rickshaws who will try to scam you at every opportunity, overcharge by at least 2x and generally fight and harass you. They also refuse to take you if they feel like it. The result is that I always call an Uber in Bangalore, even if I have to wait 15 minutes (worst case).
I think Uber definitely has an edge but I think it can be easily wiped out if the city has good taxi drivers.
Also in some parts of the city it is hard to find any non-Uber form of taxi very late at night.
>Uber and Lyft should probably be a bit more regulated
The reason behind the taxi situation now is _because_ it is regulated. Regulation never helps the end-consumers, it helps the big corporations hold out competition.
The FDA, FDIC, and other acronyms would like to have a word with you.
This is a double-edged sword as well when thinking about needing to drive a drunk, mentally ill or homeless person, but this is critical for elderly or disabled people. My wife was once refused transportation by a taxi driver when she had just to go two kilometers from the airport with a broken leg (granted, shitty situation for both sides here) - and she got compensation and another driver from the taxi central immediately.
While I'm with you on better regulation, blind deregulation has too much collateral damage IMHO.
you can't be serious
Exactly what the regulated taxi-business has lead to: The current taxi drivers does not have to care about keeping their taxi clean etc.. they don't have any competition anyway who can take their customers away - well until a number of free-market entrepreneurs entered the space and ignored the regulations, and thus the quality, competition and transparency significantly increased while price decreased. And for the big corporations this was bad. But for the end consumer it was good.
So I wonder if average young white couple on their way to dinner or whatever, simply likes the white-driver experience.
I have also noticed that when I get matched with a black Uber or Lyft driver they tend to have a low-ish rating (4.6-4.8 whereas most white drivers I get are 4.8-5.0) but I have not personally found drivers of any race to be any less skilled or courteous.
If driver race-rating data was ever publicized it'll be most damning against society in general, I think. I'd wager that Uber's passenger base is substantially more discriminatory than the company can hope to be on its most evil day.
The 5-star rating system is cover for a lot of things that I think everyone knows to some extent but doesn't enjoy thinking about.
Uber is just as popular in London than in the US so at least here that does not seem to play a role.
On another interesting axis like this, I do not believe I have ever had a female taxi driver, but I've had several female uber drivers.
This discussion always suffers from anecdata problems, since each city's taxi regime tends to be different in a bunch of different ways, and the people who drive for uber and services like it are very much subject to local circumstance.
I have had a few occasions where my driver's taken the wrong route. Not intentionally, I don't think, but a wrong turn here or there in a one-way system can really screw it up.
Each time that's happened, I leave a not-5-star rating. Within a few hours, Uber have sent me an email. I reply to that explaining the route, they take a look at the map, and every single time I've received either the difference in cost for a regular trip (if it's one I can show I've taken multiple times), or a full refund.
There are sometimes UberPool deals, where they'll offer a fixed price to go from and to anywhere within a certain region.
In my experience (Manhattan), all taxi services have about the same service, and about the same pricing, with some special variations.
Anecdotally, Most people I know have Uber, Lyft, and Gett (a third service not mentioned in this article) on their phone. When they need to go somewhere, they request a ride on multiple services, usually taking the one with the fastest pickup lowest rate. But, at any point in the process, if there is a taxi driving by then they will just hail it down and cancel the ride requests.
Personally, I will default to the Gett $10 below 110st deal, then check Uber and Lyft. Sometimes I will take a taxi if it's there. Since the real benefit of taxi request services is not waiting, if taking a taxi would be faster, then that is what I will default to.
I travel to NYC a few times a month and tend to prefer yellow cabs out of habit. But I definitely would not consider them clean when comparing Uber. Maybe it is because of the "black car" lineage of Uber, but the car is generally spotless, not sticky and relatively new. On the other hand, the yellow cabs look outwardly new and clean but on the inside are torn up.
I'm happy to let their graft payments go to waste. Those who collaborate with such rules don't deserve our protection in the end.
* Uber drivers often have no idea how to get around. In my city, they're often suburbanites who have come in to drive the drinking crowd to three or four entertainment strips. Venture outside of that and they don't even know where they are.
* The worst experiences I've ever had being driven by anyone in any context have been in Uber. My theory is that because people are in their own personal cars, they feel justified driving just like they do when they're alone. Whatever the cause, I have had some truly dangerous drivers.
* I don't necessarily need or desire a complete detailed history of every ride I've ever taken. There are huge potential privacy concerns.
* Turn-by-turn largely takes care of this, and most drivers I've had are amenable to a friendly suggestion of, "go this way, it's a little easier."
* I've never had a problem. Definitely have had more crazy / dangerous taxi cab drivers - especially in Florida, whatever that anecdotal point may be worth.
* Being able to opt in/out would be nice for data collection purposes. But I think many people would appreciate that paper trail, especially for business purposes.
It's part of why I've started using Ubers a lot less - their driver churn seems high and there are a lot of new drivers who just don't know the lay of the land, and here in NYC that's pretty critical.
A driver leaning on a GPS unit to get around is the difference between missing the Manhattan bridge on-ramp on the Brooklyn side 3 times in a row vs. getting back into Manhattan at a reasonable hour :P True story, that one.
no turn by turn gps usually causes them to blindly follow that without thinking. in places like Seattle there's a huge difference between GPS and actually knowing your way around. also paying someone to drive you somewhere kinda loses it's appeal once you have to tell them how to do it, especially if you are inebriated on your way home.
And if you're inebriated, there's much more value in getting someone else to drive you home than simply not having to tell them the best possible route. But sure, it's not great if you're paying someone and also needing to tell them how to do their job. But it sure beats the alternative of driving drunk or sleeping outside the bar.
I agree, I've wished Uber/Lyft would implement a feature where you can buy a ride for someone but guarantee that you wouldn't learn the endpoint (within e.g. some radius). Say, you justmet someone who did a favor for you and you want to return it, but in a way that doesn't reveal more information about them than they're comfortable giving.
I commented about this to a taxi driver once, and in a moment of surprising candidness, he told me that one reason this happens is because the taxi company he get dispatch from doesn't pay out credit card payments for something like a month and a half (obviously different companies and different cities will be different here), so drivers who are tight at bill time will insist on cash so they can make ends meet.
I asked an Uber driver and they said they get paid every 2 weeks or so.
- After arriving into JFK, I'd used up all my battery on the flight so decided, rather than wait to charge my phone at the airport, I'd get a local cab instead. The cab driver took me to Brooklyn.
We passed La Guardia.
After a heated argument, it still cost over 3x what it would've cost with Uber.
- Since I have a British accent, NY cabbies often assume I'm a tourist and will try and take the long way round (seriously, La Guardia?). I've had to correct them on more than one occasion about which route to take and they are always shocked when I start telling them which bridge to cross into the city or what street they should use.
- In London, I was out with some friends and one woman had missed the last tube home. Night buses from where we were wasn't an option, so we tried to hail a cab. After telling the driver where she needed to go, he told us to "fk off" and drove away. I requested an Uber for her and within 45 minutes, she was safely at home.
These are just highlights in the many terrible experiences of cabs, and my experience has been better with any ride sharing service. Why? Because customer ratings affect their ability to offer rides. Cab drivers have no such incentive, even if you call to complain with their medallion number. Unless the cab driver has done something illegal, I doubt anything happens.
Grabbing a Lyft or Uber may commit a driver to having to turn around the block, which can take several minutes, and in that time, you could have hailed half a dozen taxis.
Being a Queens resident who does not live on a main artery to Manhattan, Uber/Lyft every time.
If I was somewhere where there aren't a lot of cabs I'd probably just use Uber, it's cheaper and cleaner anyways.
Interesting use of Highcharts to this effect, especially with the theming to match your other designs. Is it a good idea in the context of this article to have dynamic data though, as the conclusion might change over time?
I believe that Uber in NYC will remain a niche player. But I do appreciate some competition against the taxis.
http://toddwschneider.com/data/taxi/taxi_uber_lyft_trips_per...
I wish we had access to such numbers for apps on the App store.
My friends and I all prefer Lyft as riders. This is due to equal if not higher availability, and limited surge pricing compared to Uber. Drivers have been pretty friendly as well.
I always ask the driver if they drive for both, and which they prefer. Every driver I've had has preferred Lyft due to it giving more back money back to the driver, a strong driver community, and simpler onboarding process.
Some of this could be due to city culture, where Austin seems to line up much more with Lyft's character than New York.
Uber is my backup option now if there are no Lyfts available.
Person 1: "Are we ubering to the game tonight?" Person 2: "Yeah, I'll call a lyft in like 10 minutes"
Which to me is really interesting from a linguistic standpoint. (Both that Uber became a verb so quick, and that it is becoming a generic term already). Incidentally, I've heard people say "lyfting" as well, but that always has referred to getting an actual Lyft, whereas "ubering" seems to refer to both just fine.
I've heard many people say they like Uber because the drivers shut up and have nice cars. I've heard other people say they like Lyft because the drivers are friendly people in normal cars and it feels more like a friend giving you a ride.
Is there any technical reason why Uber can't present a meter in the app that you can look at intermittently?
1) taxis can be more convenient for older people who are less tech-savvy and can't fully utilize smartphones (think seniors);
2) I'm not sure if you can request this on Uber, but some taxis are wheelchair accessible and they have the proper equipment for loading/unloading. You can try it with a minivan Uber but a taxi would be preferable in this case.