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Uber is definitely not perfect as a business but the taxi companies are horrible all over the place. If taxi companies would just enter the 21st century, I woul

Uber is definitely not perfect as a business but the taxi companies are horrible all over the place. If taxi companies would just enter the 21st century, I would maybe never use Uber but the thing is, they don't. We see a LOT of rivaling apps by/for the taxi companies or just by a regional company because they don't want to give their money to a US company, but most of them are absolutely awful. The ones I tried in Barcelona were unusable, unreliable and just generally crap (disclaimer; I did not try Cabify yet). There are many in many countries but most of them, especially if they are created by a cap company, let you enter all kinds of info only to get to a screen says 'when do you need your ride?' and you can pick 24 hous from now or more. What is that? The GPS/Map feature looks generally untested and not working or not even there. Besides the apps, most cabs are far more crappy than the Uber cars. I feel unsafe in a lot of them even though the cab companies insist they conform better to safety regulations; in Thailand, China or Hong Kong, cabs are mostly such garbage; smelly, usually missing seat belts, horrible suspension, drivers rude and not very good. Why would you go with them if there is an alternative? (Having said that, Barcelona is a notable exception; the cabs I was in seemed new and clean and the drivers friendly; not so in Malaga, Madrid or Faro for instance). Then there is pricing; in a lot of places cabs are slightly cheaper for short distances than Uber, but long distance... I have had quotes of 400 GBP for a cab (and multiple companies) vs < 100 GBP for Uber for long distance. If they would up their game instead of just whine and long for the olden days, then I would use them instead of Uber, but I cannot see it happen soon.

CaptainZapp 8y ago
I have had quotes of 400 GBP for a cab (and multiple companies) vs < 100 GBP for Uber for long distance. Sure, since about £200 of your trip are paid for by venture capitalists they can afford to offer such rates.
brazzy 8y ago
> We see a LOT of rivaling apps by/for the taxi companies or just by a regional company because they don't want to give their money to a US company, but most of them are absolutely awful. The ones I tried in Barcelona were unusable, unreliable and just generally crap. Have you tried mytaxi? It works in many cities all over Europe (including Barcelone) and in my experience works pretty well, including the GPS feature and getting a ride immediately.
- lm28469 8y ago
  I was going to say the same thing. It's almost exactly the same as Uber, open the app, enter a destination, a taxi picks you up and you pay through the app when you're done. In Berlin prices are very similar.
onion2k 8y ago
I have had quotes of 400 GBP for a cab (and multiple companies) vs < 100 GBP for Uber for long distance. Is this because the cost of the taxi includes milage for the return to a base location? Taxis have been doing this sort of thing for a long time, so they include all the costs in their pricing models. Uber is designed for short hops around a city where there are rides to pick up in lots of locations. I strongly suspect that means the cost of the Uber doesn't include anything for the return trip so the driver will just have to suck up that cost. If taking long trips in an Uber gets popular you'll either see the cost go up or you'll never get a driver to accept the ride.
- toth 8y ago
  This is definitely wrong. In multiple conversations with Uber drivers, they prefer the longer trips as it makes them more money. They are able to not take long trips if they prefer (although they don't know the exact destination before accepting a trip, they are told if it is long one), and choose to do so.
  - dominicr 8y ago
    Also Uber allows the drivers to get customers wherever they are. After a long trip they can work that area for a while and maybe make their way back home. With a local taxi company if a driver is out of the area they serve then they have no customers.
    - tluyben2 8y ago
      Yep, this is very nice of Uber actually; I usually have to travel (for work) to a remote area where there is no Uber (and normal cabs are always full); if you pay attention, you will find an Uber driving back to London passing by and just take that one.
- personlurking 8y ago
  When traveling in Dominican Republic, I asked an Uber driver on a 10 minute trip about my planned 30 minute trip to the airport on the following day, and he told me no drivers like to accept those due to the unpaid drive back. The next day, I made sure to tip my driver and mention this fact and he really appreciated it. Not sure if Uber pricing never includes the trip back, or if it's country-specific.
jamisteven 8y ago
uber IS the taxi of the 21st Century.
ginko 8y ago
>Uber is definitely not perfect as a business but the taxi companies are horrible all over the place. If taxi companies would just enter the 21st century, I would maybe never use Uber but the thing is, they don't. I never really understood this sentiment. This may be different in other countries, but in Western European cities, taxis are usually dependable and affordable. Just walk to the next taxi stand or hail the first one coming by.
- tluyben2 8y ago
  I don't know... I have been cursed and spat at by multiple taxi driver in Portugal and Spain (always because they thought the ride was too short and they need to get back to the end of the queue so really shitty for them hence my 21st century sentiment). And you cannot really complain; you can fill in a form which no-one ever does anything with. With Uber all of that is just better. And dependable... I missed my plane a month ago because the cab driver stood around the wrong corner for 10 minutes, did not contact me and went away again. The company called me hours later when their office opened (this was a 6 am flight) and berated me for not turning up. It's rubbish.
TelmoMenezes 8y ago
Traditional taxi services are horrible all over the world, I don't think a lot of people will dispute that. The problem with things such as Uber, and the "gig economy" in general, is that they provide a better service by condemning the people who provide it to an unstable and undignified life. The new underclass, the one that lives "below the API", is denied the opportunity to live something remotely approaching a fulfilling existence. The more this underclass grows (and it is growing), the worse society becomes. This social cost is not worth more convenient services. There has to be a better way. Taxis should get their act together, but not by being forced to compete with those who sidestep the laws that were democratically enacted to preserve human dignity, and to give the less privileged opportunities to improve their situation.
- andrenth 8y ago
  > give the less privileged opportunities to improve their situation. Isn’t that exactly what the gig economy does? What would Uber drivers be doing if uber ceased to exist? Why aren’t they doing that now?
  - TelmoMenezes 8y ago
    > Isn’t that exactly what the gig economy does? No. Inequality is increasing every year. > What would Uber drivers be doing if uber ceased to exist? Depends on the reason for Uber ceasing to exist. If Uber went bankrupt, they would probably be riding a bike to deliver food in big cities or being micromanaged by computer programs for 12 hours at a time in some warehouse, being cogs in a machine that provides outstanding customer service to those lucky enough to be able to live in less dystopic conditions. In a scenario where big companies and rich people are finally forced to pay their taxes and respect human rights, they might be applying for stable jobs as the baby boomers once did, or taking advantage of grants (that would become possible because of said taxation) to further their education. They might be engaged in something meaningful that improves our collective condition, instead of helping make some of us a bit more comfortable while we deplete our natural resources and destroy our own habitat.
    - 8y ago
NeedMoreTea 8y ago
I've used shitty cabs in some places, including the US where they were surprisingly poor. So I can understand Uber has some appeal. Here in the UK it's Uber that needs to get a clue. After a few tries of Uber I just use cabs as they're consistently reliable and have a clue where they're going, and local rat runs. Without needing to piss about with the sat nav. I've never had a cab driver phone me to ask where I'm going then not show. Uber have done this twice. So they score near zero for reliability which is what I need from a vehicle service. Just as well really considering the assorted revelations about their dodgy practices.
- tluyben2 8y ago
  > I've never had a cab driver phone me to ask where I'm going then not show. Uber have done this twice. They do that in the UK a lot because they don't like the ride, so they cancel. When they call me I always act like I cannot hear them (which is often the case) and then they always turn up. I don't think they are supposed to know where you are going before they arrive.
  - NeedMoreTea 8y ago
    Interesting. I didn't realise that was the game, or how to play. :) With cabs they've known destination first for ages unless you hail. Kind of hard on the Uber drivers if they don't know if it's a 10 minute or 2 hr drive ahead.

CaptainZapp 8y ago

I have had quotes of 400 GBP for a cab (and multiple companies) vs < 100 GBP for Uber for long distance. Sure, since about £200 of your trip are paid for by venture capitalists they can afford to offer such rates.

brazzy 8y ago

> We see a LOT of rivaling apps by/for the taxi companies or just by a regional company because they don't want to give their money to a US company, but most of them are absolutely awful. The ones I tried in Barcelona were unusable, unreliable and just generally crap. Have you tried mytaxi? It works in many cities all over Europe (including Barcelone) and in my experience works pretty well, including the GPS feature and getting a ride immediately.

lm28469 8y ago
I was going to say the same thing. It's almost exactly the same as Uber, open the app, enter a destination, a taxi picks you up and you pay through the app when you're done. In Berlin prices are very similar.

onion2k 8y ago

I have had quotes of 400 GBP for a cab (and multiple companies) vs < 100 GBP for Uber for long distance. Is this because the cost of the taxi includes milage for the return to a base location? Taxis have been doing this sort of thing for a long time, so they include all the costs in their pricing models. Uber is designed for short hops around a city where there are rides to pick up in lots of locations. I strongly suspect that means the cost of the Uber doesn't include anything for the return trip so the driver will just have to suck up that cost. If taking long trips in an Uber gets popular you'll either see the cost go up or you'll never get a driver to accept the ride.

toth 8y ago
This is definitely wrong. In multiple conversations with Uber drivers, they prefer the longer trips as it makes them more money. They are able to not take long trips if they prefer (although they don't know the exact destination before accepting a trip, they are told if it is long one), and choose to do so.
- dominicr 8y ago
  Also Uber allows the drivers to get customers wherever they are. After a long trip they can work that area for a while and maybe make their way back home. With a local taxi company if a driver is out of the area they serve then they have no customers.
  - tluyben2 8y ago
    Yep, this is very nice of Uber actually; I usually have to travel (for work) to a remote area where there is no Uber (and normal cabs are always full); if you pay attention, you will find an Uber driving back to London passing by and just take that one.
personlurking 8y ago
When traveling in Dominican Republic, I asked an Uber driver on a 10 minute trip about my planned 30 minute trip to the airport on the following day, and he told me no drivers like to accept those due to the unpaid drive back. The next day, I made sure to tip my driver and mention this fact and he really appreciated it. Not sure if Uber pricing never includes the trip back, or if it's country-specific.

jamisteven 8y ago

uber IS the taxi of the 21st Century.

ginko 8y ago

>Uber is definitely not perfect as a business but the taxi companies are horrible all over the place. If taxi companies would just enter the 21st century, I would maybe never use Uber but the thing is, they don't. I never really understood this sentiment. This may be different in other countries, but in Western European cities, taxis are usually dependable and affordable. Just walk to the next taxi stand or hail the first one coming by.

tluyben2 8y ago
I don't know... I have been cursed and spat at by multiple taxi driver in Portugal and Spain (always because they thought the ride was too short and they need to get back to the end of the queue so really shitty for them hence my 21st century sentiment). And you cannot really complain; you can fill in a form which no-one ever does anything with. With Uber all of that is just better. And dependable... I missed my plane a month ago because the cab driver stood around the wrong corner for 10 minutes, did not contact me and went away again. The company called me hours later when their office opened (this was a 6 am flight) and berated me for not turning up. It's rubbish.

TelmoMenezes 8y ago

Traditional taxi services are horrible all over the world, I don't think a lot of people will dispute that. The problem with things such as Uber, and the "gig economy" in general, is that they provide a better service by condemning the people who provide it to an unstable and undignified life. The new underclass, the one that lives "below the API", is denied the opportunity to live something remotely approaching a fulfilling existence. The more this underclass grows (and it is growing), the worse society becomes. This social cost is not worth more convenient services. There has to be a better way. Taxis should get their act together, but not by being forced to compete with those who sidestep the laws that were democratically enacted to preserve human dignity, and to give the less privileged opportunities to improve their situation.

andrenth 8y ago
> give the less privileged opportunities to improve their situation. Isn’t that exactly what the gig economy does? What would Uber drivers be doing if uber ceased to exist? Why aren’t they doing that now?
- TelmoMenezes 8y ago
  > Isn’t that exactly what the gig economy does? No. Inequality is increasing every year. > What would Uber drivers be doing if uber ceased to exist? Depends on the reason for Uber ceasing to exist. If Uber went bankrupt, they would probably be riding a bike to deliver food in big cities or being micromanaged by computer programs for 12 hours at a time in some warehouse, being cogs in a machine that provides outstanding customer service to those lucky enough to be able to live in less dystopic conditions. In a scenario where big companies and rich people are finally forced to pay their taxes and respect human rights, they might be applying for stable jobs as the baby boomers once did, or taking advantage of grants (that would become possible because of said taxation) to further their education. They might be engaged in something meaningful that improves our collective condition, instead of helping make some of us a bit more comfortable while we deplete our natural resources and destroy our own habitat.
  - 8y ago

NeedMoreTea 8y ago

I've used shitty cabs in some places, including the US where they were surprisingly poor. So I can understand Uber has some appeal. Here in the UK it's Uber that needs to get a clue. After a few tries of Uber I just use cabs as they're consistently reliable and have a clue where they're going, and local rat runs. Without needing to piss about with the sat nav. I've never had a cab driver phone me to ask where I'm going then not show. Uber have done this twice. So they score near zero for reliability which is what I need from a vehicle service. Just as well really considering the assorted revelations about their dodgy practices.

tluyben2 8y ago
> I've never had a cab driver phone me to ask where I'm going then not show. Uber have done this twice. They do that in the UK a lot because they don't like the ride, so they cancel. When they call me I always act like I cannot hear them (which is often the case) and then they always turn up. I don't think they are supposed to know where you are going before they arrive.
- NeedMoreTea 8y ago
  Interesting. I didn't realise that was the game, or how to play. :) With cabs they've known destination first for ages unless you hail. Kind of hard on the Uber drivers if they don't know if it's a 10 minute or 2 hr drive ahead.