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> drivers who are happy are the ones who recognize this and do it to make some extra cash in their spare time after a 'real' job; the ones who are upset are try

> drivers who are happy are the ones who recognize this and do it to make some extra cash in their spare time after a 'real' job; the ones who are upset are trying to make their living driving. This is also Uber's supposed mentality, but you are wrong and Uber is misleading the public. If a part time job is profitable, then doing it full time would also be profitable. The biggest lie in their marketing campaign is their claim that Uber is about ride sharing, but that's serious bullshit meant for fooling drivers and legislators, because the driver cannot control the passengers' destination and they take a pay cut when rejecting orders. You see, the drivers that are upset are those that have done the math and realize that they cannot cover the maintenance costs for their personal car, along with what they lose in time spent in commuting and maintenance and still make a worthwhile profit. At this point Uber survives because they found enough gullible drivers that waste time and add serious mileage to their own cars for Uber's profit. But at some point the bill kicks in.

envy2 10y ago
> At this point Uber survives because they found enough gullible drivers that waste time and add serious miles to their own cars for Uber's profit. But at some point the bill kicks in. Absolutely—at some point, the drivers all wise up, there aren't any new gullible people to replace them, the supply of drivers falls, and Uber and Lyft and their ilk have to raise fares. The only real question is whether this happens before autonomous vehicles can replace the drivers entirely. Uber, at least, is betting that it doesn't, and I think they're right.
jimmywanger 10y ago
> If a part time job is profitable, then doing it full time would also be profitable. That's making a major assumption. A lot of times aren't as profitable as others, and there might not be enough profitable hours for a full time job, but enough profitable hours for a part time job. For instance, Friday nights in downtown at last call might be very profitable for 4 hours, which would make perfect sense as a part time job. If you need to make a certain amount of money, you might be forced to work hours that are a net drain on your finances, such as 2pm on a Tuesday afternoon.

envy2 10y ago

> At this point Uber survives because they found enough gullible drivers that waste time and add serious miles to their own cars for Uber's profit. But at some point the bill kicks in. Absolutely—at some point, the drivers all wise up, there aren't any new gullible people to replace them, the supply of drivers falls, and Uber and Lyft and their ilk have to raise fares. The only real question is whether this happens before autonomous vehicles can replace the drivers entirely. Uber, at least, is betting that it doesn't, and I think they're right.

jimmywanger 10y ago

> If a part time job is profitable, then doing it full time would also be profitable. That's making a major assumption. A lot of times aren't as profitable as others, and there might not be enough profitable hours for a full time job, but enough profitable hours for a part time job. For instance, Friday nights in downtown at last call might be very profitable for 4 hours, which would make perfect sense as a part time job. If you need to make a certain amount of money, you might be forced to work hours that are a net drain on your finances, such as 2pm on a Tuesday afternoon.