What's your Uber experience?

[Major]

So there is no price incentive to use Uber rather than a taxi from MEL to the CBD

 

[justcallmeryan]

The problems with the taxi industry on the other hand far outweigh the minor problems I have with uber.

+1... The minor annoyances I have had with UBER have been just that, minor. They now charge a 5% service charge for booking cabs (in SYD anyway) which I find annoying. And I got caught in 'surge' pricing once on a Friday in peak hour. Without properly reading the fine print I accepted the extra charge upon booking the UBER X and paid 3x the normal fare.. This meant a $30 cab fare ended up costing +$90 for which I was NOT happy. My own fault for not reading.

Annoyances with the taxi 'racket' in this city?? Too many to bother listing....

 

[Squirrel.Monkey]

I've used Uber black and X and love them, drivers are super friendly and grateful for the job. I even found one guy that drives a van (seats 4) with a lot of room for luggage that does flat fee $25 to the airport from around Inner West and Rockdale/Earlwood area.

I have found that only Uber Black seems to be available from Sydney airport when landing.

 

[Major]

Uber Black seems to be the only one available from MEL to the CBD as well. There is no price advantage in using Uber from the airport

 

[timmitch]

used Uber for the first time last night in Perth to head to airport. Just booked the basic car and was quick pickup. Driver was very friendly and was cheaper than a taxi. I had a 30 off offer which brought the price down to under $20. Won't use a taxi service in Perth again

 

[Moindardt]

We used Uber extensively in NY, San Fran and LA last year (about 30 trips). With 4 kids, we only ever used the large 4wd (i think thats what the tab was called) version. Got Luxury Suburban or Escalades each time. Immaculate full leather cars. Incredibly invested drivers who made sure they did everything right by us. It was cheaper than a large taxi and only marginally more expensive than a normal taxi. Friends with 1-2 kids would usually get picked up in Mercedes or BMW (5 series or higher).

They are private contractors as well, so we did some deals where we paid them by the hour to act as our tour guides (cheaper than tour for 6 of us and infinitely more flexible). We also went on a shopping trip with one. He would come to where ever we were (this was around Times Square) and pickup up the shopping, so we didn't have to lug it around. A little expensive, but we were short on time and needed to maximise the time on the ground and SWMMBO's ability to spend, far outweighs my ability to carry. They saved us with Airport transfers after the transfer company stuffed up. (I HATE TRANSFER COMPANIES!!)

We have heard similar stories about other Major cities. We are going to use them in Paris and Rome later this year as they can't be any worse than transfer companies and given most transfer companies want at least EU$200 each way for a coughpy mini-van, can't be any more expensive.

I still haven't tried in Brisbane. I won't be trying UberX but will try Black when it gets here.

 

[DavBlayn]

Has anyone had any experiences with the surge pricing?

 

[TomVexille]

Has anyone had any experiences with the surge pricing?

I've always managed to wait it out. Sample size of 2 however...

 

[albatross710]

Has anyone had any experiences with the surge pricing?

Yes, it's a rort. Use regular taxi when it applies. I received this reply when I complained. To me it said "We are going to rip you off but at least you can see it in big bold print." So for me, not a reliable 24x7 supplier, more of a case of needing to pick the times with them.

Thanks for reaching out! It appears that you had your trip when surge pricingwas in effect.
With surge pricing, Uber rates increase to get more cars on the road and ensure reliability during the busiest times. When enough cars are on the road,prices go back down to normal levels. It’s important to know that you’ll always be notified in big, bold print if surge pricing is in effect. When rates are more than double, the surge confirmation screen also requires you to type in the specific surge multiplier to ensure you understand what rates to expect.
It is absolutely within your right to choose not to ride during that increasedpricing. Our entire team is currently working very hard to ensure there is enough supply on the roads to avoid surge pricing.
You also have the option to enter a fare estimate with the surge pricing. This way, you know the exact amount you will pay before you confirm the ride.

 

[DavBlayn]

Yes, it's a rort. Use regular taxi when it applies. I received this reply when I complained. To me it said "We are going to rip you off but at least you can see it in big bold print." So for me, not a reliable 24x7 supplier, more of a case of needing to pick the times with them.

If the final fare is astronomically higher than the estimated fare, do you think you can just walk out?

 

[Daver6]

I don't see any issue with surge pricing. You know about it BEFORE you enter into the contract for that ride. If you don't like it, don't use it. Personally, I think the concept of surge pricing is really clever. It encourages more drivers onto the road to meet demand.

 

[trippin_the_rift]

I've used surge pricing at 3x. It was still faster, easier, cleaner than a taxi. And the driver was UBER nice since he was making a killing.
Plus - it makes for a great story to tell taxi drivers..

 

[ozmouse]

I too used at 2X surge pricing.... 0200 hours, pouring rain with drunk partner..... Best money I ever spent on a cab. Very happy to press the button to accept fare.

 

[PLANT]

Do you tip uber drivers?

 

[TomVexille]

Do you tip uber drivers?

I certainly haven't

 

[travelislife]

Do you tip uber drivers?

Definitely not. That is one of the best things that no actual cash changes hands.

 

[ajd]

Was in SYD for work a few weeks ago, company organised a hire car to get me from the airport to my accommodation in Kirribilli, then I decided to try out UberX to go visit my sister for dinner in Glebe.

For the ride to Glebe, the car arrived significantly later than what the app had suggested as the driver, who was in the North Shore area when I requested the ride, decided to cross the Harbour Bridge and navigate around the CBD before coming back over the bridge to pick me up. The rest of the trip displayed a similar level of quality navigational ability, in spite of GPS directions:



Needless to say, very unimpressed - though Uber did give me a fare correction very quickly after I requested it, so at least that wasn't too bad.

I requested another UberX to go back to Kirribilli later in the evening - that ride was far quicker (13 minutes and $20.77), though I wasn't overly impressed when the driver explained that we had to wait for the police car to reach the next intersection up the road before we did a U-turn over double white lines...

Following morning, I requested an UberBlack (at company expense) to get me up to Macquarie Park - licensed hire car turned up in just a few minutes, and the driver was as professional as any other hire car driver. No problems with that.

 

[Febs]

Uber was a lifesaver in Beijing over the weekend. Taxis in China (at least in Shanghai and Beijing) on a Fri/Sat night are a complete nightmare. You're incredibly lucky to flag one, then they just set some arbitrary figure (sometimes about 6x what the fare is worth). Not fun. There are apps, but from what I understand they're mostly non-English.

Uber though - brilliant. Even with 2.0X surge pricing, "People's Uber" (which got us a big ~2yo sedan with leather, a nice driver and nice little touches like a phone charger in the back) cost 20RMB (about $4AUD) for a 6km trip. Less than the taxi did the opposite way (and that was WITH surge pricing)!

Had similar experiences recently in Melbourne and London. Put simply, the taxi industry (in a number of countries) has a lot to be concerned about...

 

[N860CR]

I've found that the UberX quality has been dropping rapidly. The last few trips have been in old BA Falcons with the taxi stickers peeled off. Last one had a blown headlight and was probably 500,000kms overdue for new shocks. The last few drivers had been very much the stereotypical Sydney cab driver. I guess it's still cheap... But the quality aspect has dropped off

 

[Paul_PER]

Had my first female UberX driver over the weekend. I did ask her if there were many female drivers and she said there were so many Uber drivers in Perth that she didn't know.

I've never had to wait more than about 5 minutes in Perth for one. They recently dropped their fares here. Most drivers seem to have been doing it for only a few weeks or a few months. Every single driver I've asked has said they like Uber. None has said they do it full-time or as their main or only job.

In Saturday's paper there was a long article about how Swan Taxi's (the local cab company here in Perth with about 90% of the market) are "fighting back". After reading the article I still can't see any reason for going back to cabs. As for cabs being safer see the attached and make up your own mind.

[FONT=&quot]https://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/wa/a/27575722/fewer-cabbies-face-criminal-counts/[/FONT]