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Unshaven drivers? I can't help but read this as a dogwhistle to people who don't like regular taxis because they're often driven by immigrants with facial hair

Unshaven drivers? I can't help but read this as a dogwhistle to people who don't like regular taxis because they're often driven by immigrants with facial hair. Incidentally I happen to believe uber's initial rise to popularity exploited this as well. Lots of people talking about how great it was that uber's drivers were 'just regular guys', as if other taxi drivers are in some way 'irregular.' The only difference I ever saw was the relative proportion of immigrant drivers (a gap which, to Uber's credit, narrowed a lot over the subsequent years.)

908B64B197 6y ago
> I can't help but read this as a dogwhistle to people who don't like regular taxis because they're often driven by immigrants with facial hair. Now that I read the sentence again, yes I can see it. > Lots of people talking about how great it was that uber's drivers were 'just regular guys', as if other taxi drivers are in some way 'irregular.' Sadly, I think they meant "not professional drivers". Pre-Uber taxis had an horrible reputation for bad service in a lot of metro areas.
- giarc 6y ago
  In my limited experience, taxis drivers know the routes and where to go. It's obvious they drive a lot, but they often drive aggresively. Uber drivers on the other hand are safer drivers, but I find they never listen to the GPS and I'm always reminding them of the upcoming highway exit they are about to miss.
  - crooked-v 6y ago
    For contrast, my only experiences with local taxis pre-Uber had them late, overpriced, and completely unfamiliar with local landmarks every time.
  - Consultant32452 6y ago
    There was a brief period post-Uber revolution where I had become accustomed to the Uber experience but my local airport would not allow them. So I took a taxi home from the airport. The tax driver had his wife on speakerphone the entire ride. They weren't even really talking, she was just on in the background, with an occasional sound/remark. The driver also made me provide step by step instructions. It was not sufficient for me to give him the address and let him navigate there using his favorite gps app.
  - mcguire 6y ago
    Note that several years ago, there was an analysis of Uber drivers (by Uber's own economist) that said that one of the reasons that the money made by male drivers was greater than that of female drivers was due to male drivers driving faster and more aggressively. There are economic reasons for commercial drivers to drive aggressively. As for me, as a motorcyclist, I've long noticed that taxis, and other commercial vehicles, often behave as if they believe other vehicles will get out of their way. Which they usually do.
m-ee 6y ago
I agree that it was a dog whistle, less sure about the “just regular guys” part of Uber and Lyft. One of the reasons I used the services when they came out was that my driver was likely to be a local who generally knew where things were, but I wouldn’t have to suffer the abuse of regular taxis (try going to Oakland or the sunset at night). As the demographics changed most drivers are more often than not immigrants coming from as far away as Tracy and Sacramento with less local knowledge and potentially a bit of a language barrier, and they’ll often refuse rides just like the pre ride share taxis. I don’t care at all about the national origin of my driver, but it does get frustrating having a driver with little sense of where they’re going and a limited ability to communicate the best route. Taxis at least tended to know their way around if they didn’t refuse to drive me.
mcguire 6y ago
Once upon a time, years ago, Austin tried to improve the appearances of its taxi drivers. I can't remember the details, but one anecdote comes to mind: one driver always wore a t-shirt and shorts; when one set got too badly soiled (over, say, a week), he stopped at a garage sale to buy a new pair, threw the old ones away, and kept driving.
DigiDigiorno 6y ago
I can't speak to the writer's opinion, but there are plenty of us who prefer drivers who speak our language fluently, follow hyenic norms, and follow a dress code that is workplace appropriate. You do not need to be an immigrant to be deficient of these norms. In fact, as far as personal personnel anecdotes go, I do not see more inappropriate attire or a lack of hygiene from them compared to anyone else in other service industries. When I lived in a smaller city in a different state, a large percent of the taxi drivers were from a specific country and did not know English very well. The details of a taxi trip are communicated orally, so this was quite inconvenient. A lack of hygiene and clean clothes isn't a deal breaker or anything, but it certainly feels out of place in a service with an expected tip. (I think the hygiene/dress issue is more based on the lack of standards in the taxi companies, especially when they have a monopoly on the service--even the cars were unkempt.) I'm now in Florida with the option to Uber. I never have a problem with non-English speaking Uber drivers. 99% of the time, everything material is communicated through the app, 1% of the time, we have fun trying to communicate whatever small detail needs to be discussed. TLDR: No idea if the writer is being nationalistic, but I feel the taxi industry I experienced was sub-standard and the workers were actually less hygienic, while Uber doesn't have that problem and makes it easier to work with those who do not speak your preferred language.

908B64B197 6y ago

> I can't help but read this as a dogwhistle to people who don't like regular taxis because they're often driven by immigrants with facial hair. Now that I read the sentence again, yes I can see it. > Lots of people talking about how great it was that uber's drivers were 'just regular guys', as if other taxi drivers are in some way 'irregular.' Sadly, I think they meant "not professional drivers". Pre-Uber taxis had an horrible reputation for bad service in a lot of metro areas.

giarc 6y ago
In my limited experience, taxis drivers know the routes and where to go. It's obvious they drive a lot, but they often drive aggresively. Uber drivers on the other hand are safer drivers, but I find they never listen to the GPS and I'm always reminding them of the upcoming highway exit they are about to miss.
- crooked-v 6y ago
  For contrast, my only experiences with local taxis pre-Uber had them late, overpriced, and completely unfamiliar with local landmarks every time.
- Consultant32452 6y ago
  There was a brief period post-Uber revolution where I had become accustomed to the Uber experience but my local airport would not allow them. So I took a taxi home from the airport. The tax driver had his wife on speakerphone the entire ride. They weren't even really talking, she was just on in the background, with an occasional sound/remark. The driver also made me provide step by step instructions. It was not sufficient for me to give him the address and let him navigate there using his favorite gps app.
- mcguire 6y ago
  Note that several years ago, there was an analysis of Uber drivers (by Uber's own economist) that said that one of the reasons that the money made by male drivers was greater than that of female drivers was due to male drivers driving faster and more aggressively. There are economic reasons for commercial drivers to drive aggressively. As for me, as a motorcyclist, I've long noticed that taxis, and other commercial vehicles, often behave as if they believe other vehicles will get out of their way. Which they usually do.

m-ee 6y ago

I agree that it was a dog whistle, less sure about the “just regular guys” part of Uber and Lyft. One of the reasons I used the services when they came out was that my driver was likely to be a local who generally knew where things were, but I wouldn’t have to suffer the abuse of regular taxis (try going to Oakland or the sunset at night). As the demographics changed most drivers are more often than not immigrants coming from as far away as Tracy and Sacramento with less local knowledge and potentially a bit of a language barrier, and they’ll often refuse rides just like the pre ride share taxis. I don’t care at all about the national origin of my driver, but it does get frustrating having a driver with little sense of where they’re going and a limited ability to communicate the best route. Taxis at least tended to know their way around if they didn’t refuse to drive me.

mcguire 6y ago

Once upon a time, years ago, Austin tried to improve the appearances of its taxi drivers. I can't remember the details, but one anecdote comes to mind: one driver always wore a t-shirt and shorts; when one set got too badly soiled (over, say, a week), he stopped at a garage sale to buy a new pair, threw the old ones away, and kept driving.

DigiDigiorno 6y ago

I can't speak to the writer's opinion, but there are plenty of us who prefer drivers who speak our language fluently, follow hyenic norms, and follow a dress code that is workplace appropriate. You do not need to be an immigrant to be deficient of these norms. In fact, as far as personal personnel anecdotes go, I do not see more inappropriate attire or a lack of hygiene from them compared to anyone else in other service industries. When I lived in a smaller city in a different state, a large percent of the taxi drivers were from a specific country and did not know English very well. The details of a taxi trip are communicated orally, so this was quite inconvenient. A lack of hygiene and clean clothes isn't a deal breaker or anything, but it certainly feels out of place in a service with an expected tip. (I think the hygiene/dress issue is more based on the lack of standards in the taxi companies, especially when they have a monopoly on the service--even the cars were unkempt.) I'm now in Florida with the option to Uber. I never have a problem with non-English speaking Uber drivers. 99% of the time, everything material is communicated through the app, 1% of the time, we have fun trying to communicate whatever small detail needs to be discussed. TLDR: No idea if the writer is being nationalistic, but I feel the taxi industry I experienced was sub-standard and the workers were actually less hygienic, while Uber doesn't have that problem and makes it easier to work with those who do not speak your preferred language.