4 ms·

For one, I think the intent of the requirement can be satisfied by alternate means. For example, like the google map that is recorded and displayed to me of eve

by pbh101 10y ago

For one, I think the intent of the requirement can be satisfied by alternate means. For example, like the google map that is recorded and displayed to me of every Uber trip I've taken.

icebraining 10y ago
How do you know the map is correct and immutable? You're essentially trusting Uber itself to keep a good record, whereas the law is designed to avoid trusting the taxi companies at all, by mandating sealed meters.
- tyingq 10y ago
  It's free and easy to use other tools to verify, and you have a past trips history. They could fiddle with maps, but changing the origin or destination points would be noticed. Sealed meters don't force the driver to take the most efficient route either. Nor do they show the full price before you commit to the trip. Map based apps are just better than meters all around.
- jonknee 10y ago
  That's a nice thought, but tampered taximeters 100% do exist, it's not a hypothetical. On the other hand, Uber faking or altering a receipt is hypothetical. Update: Also, if Uber is found to be cheating at some point there is a record of every ride so you can bet they will be forced to make everyone whole. Good luck getting a settlement on your random taxi ride.
- Sargos 10y ago
  Uber uses Google Maps. You can 100% trust that. Even if Uber changed to their own proprietary map system you could still use your receipt and validate that the trip was the best route by using Google Maps yourself. The system is very open. Taxi meters are not. I have no way of verifying that my taxi driver is charging me the correct price since meters can be gamed. Also the meter only judges distance. It can't tell when the driver takes a long route to pad out the fare. Uber will refund your money in that case but with a taxi meter you are stuck paying for a bad fare.
- pbh101 10y ago
  In addition to the good points by the sibling comments, one more I'll add: I frequently take trips in parts of Chicago that I know extremely well, and thus can vet the sanity of the routes posted, as well as sanity-check the route while en route: if something looks fishy to me on the map, I will most likely have noticed it at the time. While this doesn't cover all rides I may take, repeated experiences with it performing correctly does build my faith that the system is working correctly and is free of guile. Plus, all this convo overlooks that this would be an incredibly stupid place to try to systematically bilk customers: it would be very easy to spot and plausible deniability would be difficult to establish and believe, especially since it has worked for years with more or less no problems. And it has a very high virality potential when everyone would want to be checking their own trip records to see if they were scammed too.

by pbh101 10y ago

For one, I think the intent of the requirement can be satisfied by alternate means. For example, like the google map that is recorded and displayed to me of every Uber trip I've taken.

icebraining 10y ago

How do you know the map is correct and immutable? You're essentially trusting Uber itself to keep a good record, whereas the law is designed to avoid trusting the taxi companies at all, by mandating sealed meters.

tyingq 10y ago
It's free and easy to use other tools to verify, and you have a past trips history. They could fiddle with maps, but changing the origin or destination points would be noticed. Sealed meters don't force the driver to take the most efficient route either. Nor do they show the full price before you commit to the trip. Map based apps are just better than meters all around.
jonknee 10y ago
That's a nice thought, but tampered taximeters 100% do exist, it's not a hypothetical. On the other hand, Uber faking or altering a receipt is hypothetical. Update: Also, if Uber is found to be cheating at some point there is a record of every ride so you can bet they will be forced to make everyone whole. Good luck getting a settlement on your random taxi ride.
Sargos 10y ago
Uber uses Google Maps. You can 100% trust that. Even if Uber changed to their own proprietary map system you could still use your receipt and validate that the trip was the best route by using Google Maps yourself. The system is very open. Taxi meters are not. I have no way of verifying that my taxi driver is charging me the correct price since meters can be gamed. Also the meter only judges distance. It can't tell when the driver takes a long route to pad out the fare. Uber will refund your money in that case but with a taxi meter you are stuck paying for a bad fare.
pbh101 10y ago
In addition to the good points by the sibling comments, one more I'll add: I frequently take trips in parts of Chicago that I know extremely well, and thus can vet the sanity of the routes posted, as well as sanity-check the route while en route: if something looks fishy to me on the map, I will most likely have noticed it at the time. While this doesn't cover all rides I may take, repeated experiences with it performing correctly does build my faith that the system is working correctly and is free of guile. Plus, all this convo overlooks that this would be an incredibly stupid place to try to systematically bilk customers: it would be very easy to spot and plausible deniability would be difficult to establish and believe, especially since it has worked for years with more or less no problems. And it has a very high virality potential when everyone would want to be checking their own trip records to see if they were scammed too.