Uber being banned from London
Oct 7, 2017, 10:13 am
#106
Join Date: Sep 2015
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I doubt that drivers on their own would have the means to start a competing platform on a citywide basis. They simply don't have the manpower or money to "stick it to Uber". Not to mention that Uber gathers customers globally and those will in return use it wherever it's available. Would you take Abdul's Superduper Taxico app in Dubai when there's Uber too?
Oct 8, 2017, 3:16 am
#107
Ambassador: Emirates Airlines
Original Poster
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Manchester, UK
Posts: 18,622
Regarding the pricing, Uber are a similar price to Private Hire in my experience. The advantage being you don't have to phone or use a useless app.
Uber are a heck of a lot cheaper than black cabs. My regular journey back from MAN to home is about £15 in an Uber and > £30 in a black cab. I also have to direct the black cab driver all the way as they have no idea where I live, and most don't have GPS (or at least didn't when I used them regularly).
Uber are a heck of a lot cheaper than black cabs. My regular journey back from MAN to home is about £15 in an Uber and > £30 in a black cab. I also have to direct the black cab driver all the way as they have no idea where I live, and most don't have GPS (or at least didn't when I used them regularly).
Oct 8, 2017, 3:58 am
#108
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It's not just the price for me, it is the whole experience, I have lost count in the "olden days" where I would ring up for a cab and be told "it's on its way" or "10 minutes away" and basically rinse and repeat until some time in the not-so-near-future it would turn up. In Vegas it was just superb.
Oct 8, 2017, 12:34 pm
#109
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 22
I see more of a danger in that. Just think about it for a minute. If Uber dominates markets everywhere, they can just dictate the price for rides and at the same time dictate pay of drivers.
The danger in all of this is that Uber has the power to eradicate competition. Once that is gone Uber will be king and not only enjoy local monopolies but one global one. But seeing how the arrival of Uber everywhere is cheered on by customers rather than them having reservations (e.g. "yeah price is great but what's it going to be like 5/10/15 years from now?") may make an eventual IPO very interesting.
The danger in all of this is that Uber has the power to eradicate competition. Once that is gone Uber will be king and not only enjoy local monopolies but one global one. But seeing how the arrival of Uber everywhere is cheered on by customers rather than them having reservations (e.g. "yeah price is great but what's it going to be like 5/10/15 years from now?") may make an eventual IPO very interesting.
Oct 8, 2017, 5:08 pm
#110
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It is definitely bad if there’s no competition. It’s also bad if the drivers are priced into poverty, which is what can happen if you allow an absolutely free and unregulated market. I’ve long thought the antidote to Uber’s wrongdoings would be for drivers to form their own co-operatives. There are other software solutions out there (albeit not as slick in terms of the end to end experience).
Oct 9, 2017, 2:30 am
#111
Join Date: Aug 2013
Posts: 8,775
For info, this is a very good BBC podcast which utterly debunks the LTDA claims that you're more likely to get raped/sexually assaulted in an Uber.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b095tn27
More or Less is an excellent series by the way - I'd highly recommend subscribing to the podcast.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b095tn27
More or Less is an excellent series by the way - I'd highly recommend subscribing to the podcast.
Oct 9, 2017, 12:50 pm
#112
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Running at a loss to gain market share is certainly a lot more transparent than pressuring regulators to block your competition.
Like others have posted, as an international business traveler (this is Flyer Talk, right?) I use Uber because:
- One app works for almost everywhere I go. Can easily check beforehand whether or not. Goodbye to the "First Visit airport ripoff" that used to be a rite of travel.
- You can see where the car is and when it will arrive.
- No hanging on the phone , x10 for every taxi company, waiting for a taxi controller to tell you no cars are available.
- You have contact with the driver before and after the lift.
- You have some comeback if you lose or leave something
- Better cars and better drivers.
- (And as one driver said to me, "you get better drivers - and I get better passengers")
- Complete digital record of and receipts for all journeys - a godsend for business travel. Goodbye to the scribbled receipt stuffed into your hand while you're collecting bags, finishing a phone call, stuffing change into your wallet and trying to get out of the cab.
- Cashless - another godsend. Get out, thank the driver, and go. Bliss.
- Often it's cheaper, but that is the least of my priorities. Sometimes it's dearer . Surge pricing cures the age-old problem of too many taxis on Monday night and not enough on Saturday night.
Of course Uber has many faults. The media are not slow to report them.
But as we say in technology development "The perfect is the enemy of the good"
Oct 9, 2017, 1:48 pm
#113
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 22
"Running at a loss to gain market share is certainly a lot more transparent than pressuring regulators to block your competition."
Black taxi drivers have tried and failed to do this in London. Uber alone is the architect of its own licence non-renewal.
Black taxi drivers have tried and failed to do this in London. Uber alone is the architect of its own licence non-renewal.
Oct 10, 2017, 1:13 am
#114
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For info, this is a very good BBC podcast which utterly debunks the LTDA claims that you're more likely to get raped/sexually assaulted in an Uber.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b095tn27
More or Less is an excellent series by the way - I'd highly recommend subscribing to the podcast.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b095tn27
More or Less is an excellent series by the way - I'd highly recommend subscribing to the podcast.
Oct 10, 2017, 6:02 am
#115
Join Date: Sep 2015
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Oct 13, 2017, 5:41 am
#116
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UBER have appealed
And uber have submited their appeal - but talks with TFL still on-going.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-41606965
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-41606965
Oct 13, 2017, 8:29 am
#117
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It'll all be fine and both sides can declare victory. Hurrah. Let's face it, Harvey Weinstein was probably responsible for more assaults on women than Uber was. Ban Harvey Weinstein I say!
Nov 10, 2017, 4:30 am
#118
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Uber lost the appeal in the UK employment case (not the ban). https://www.theguardian.com/technolo...rights-workers
Nov 10, 2017, 12:02 pm
#120
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An update that the Uber / TFL issue is having effects in the rest of the UK.
Last week Brighton & Hove City Council only gave uber a 6 month licence extension awaiting the resolution of the issues between TFL and Uber.
Last week Brighton & Hove City Council only gave uber a 6 month licence extension awaiting the resolution of the issues between TFL and Uber.