Happy Easter/清明, all.

I've been meaning to post to this thread for the past week or so because I'm continuing to learn a lot more about how Uber works in Shanghai, and would like to share my insights:

1) Uber (along with other taxi apps) isn't completely legal. I think we all know this, but it's taken me a while to grasp the full extent of the issue (which inevitably comes up in most conversations with drivers).
-there have been 9 "stings" in the past 3 days (7 in Lujiazui and 2 on NJ Road in front of Jiuguang)
-I actually wanted to be dropped off at Jiuguang today, but my driver (nice housewife with a beautiful BMW 7 series) asked if I could choose a "safer" location nearby (I obliged)
-she said that the traffic police are targeting cars with foreigners riding in the back seats, and they are trained to ask questions (in English) about you and your relationship with the driver (if you're sitting in the back seat when no one is riding shotgun, it's pretty hard to play the "we're friends" card)
-it's become SOP for Uber drivers to make Lujiazui pickups in parking structures (as those of you that live here can attest, Lujiazui is probably the worst place in the entire city for hailing taxis... meters are always broken)
-I requested an Uber from the Portman on Monday night, and was standing by the Uber sign, but the driver called me and said that I needed to walk out to the street because he was afraid to go there (security camera would "out" him)
-today's driver told me that the penalty for being busted is Y10,000 and a 3-month suspension of both the car and driver licenses.... "most drivers aren't afraid of the 10,000, but we don't want to lose our ability to drive"

2) Even though People's Uber is cheaper than other taxi apps, many Chinese people have been slow to adopt because of their inability to provide 发票 (I sent an email to Uber support on Tuesday requesting a consolidated 发票 for 2015-Q1 rides to test this theory, and they have yet to get back to me)

3) I've almost completely addressed the "drivers blindly following GPS" issue I raised previously
-if you know where you're going, drivers are glad to follow advice
-in fact, they now thank me for my optimization of XTD-JA temple and vv routings because this allows them to fit in more rides (certain driver bonuses are based on the number of rides)

4) About half of People's Uber drivers love to talk with foreign customers
-they want to improve their English and learn about life in other countries
-this can be annoying when you're trying to get work done, but I always try to be polite when dismissing them

5) Recent rates
-XTD--JA Temple, People's Uber no surge/traffic, Y10.50 v. Y20 for taxi
-XTD--Gubei, People's Uber no surge/traffic, Y22 v. Y35 for taxi
-XTD--Longyang Road Maglev, People's Uber no surge/traffic, Y28 v. Y45 for taxi
-IKEA-XTD, Uber XL no surge/traffic, Y50 v. Y25 for taxi
-surges are typically 1.8 during morning rush hour, 1.5 during evening rush hour and after 11p
-I think my recent Uber figures are a little on the low side because I seem to be getting a 20% or 30% discount on some, but not all, rides (due to completing X number of rides during a certain period; my account doesn't show any active promotions though)

6) I can now confirm that Uber XL guarantees you a GL8 or similar (good news for those of you that have a lot of people/stuff)

7) People's Uber is a complete lottery (anything from a Ford Focus to an S600 is possible)
-if the driver who accepts your request has a two-seater and you aren't traveling alone, just cancel

8) I can relate to those of you who feel that taxi apps are a bad thing because they are making it harder than ever to get taxis, but Uber has created its own ecosystem (e.g. people that would have never contemplated becoming taxi drivers have been enabled, they love it, and we no longer have to pad our schedules by 20 minutes in order to allow for finding taxis)