Uber Hasn't Had an Effect on Drunken-Driving Deaths, Study Finds • Hacker News Board

Re: Uber Hasn't Had an Effect on Drunken-Driving Deaths, Study Finds

#51

Post by subway » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 2:06 PM UTC

p4wnc6 wrote: post #25

iamshs wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have never seen a clean taxi except once, and also 80% of drivers had broken machines and took me to ATMs instead. One guy even had his own square reader, which I thought was nifty. But the best part was discovering that our new home address was blacklisted by taxis due to previous occupants shenanigans. Thank god Uber came and smashed them into the ground.

More than one taxi is clean. Fewer than 80% of taxi card readers are broken. No one will believe your claim of being blacklisted unless you give proof, and taxi services have hardly been "smashed into the ground" by Uber. I continue to enjoy using taxis in every urban area I travel to, and look forward to the way taxis keep competition pressure high for Uber by adopting various changes to make their level of service…

No one will believe your claim of consistent reliable service without proof. The taxi industry has fucked its own reputation quite thoroughly.

Re: Uber Hasn't Had an Effect on Drunken-Driving Deaths, Study Finds

#52

Post by p4wnc6 » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 3:03 PM UTC

kaishiro wrote: post #45

p4wnc6 wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Given that I easily rode in a hundred taxis all over Boston, Cambridge, Somerville, Brookline, and Chestnut Hill, it would be extremely statistically unlikely that I just happened to get only the far above average good experiences each time. The anecdote I described also matches the general experiences of all my friends and family as well, with occasional outliers (both good and bad), so I feel very confident in sayi…

I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree on this one. It's the first I've ever heard of a satisfied taxi customer in Boston but I'm glad to hear there's at least one!

It's not just me though. Dozens of friends, family members, classmates, and coworkers all described the same experiences I've had whenever the topic came up.

The average-case taxi ride in Boston is quite good.

Re: Uber Hasn't Had an Effect on Drunken-Driving Deaths, Study Finds

#53

Post by p4wnc6 » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 3:03 PM UTC

abritinthebay wrote: post #37

p4wnc6 wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If these are your experiences, then your experiences seem to be very different than the average case, especially the 50% non-functioning card reader experience. While I'm sorry that you have had such bad experiences, since your experiences differ so much from what is common, I don't feel people should base their expectations on what you say. Instead, you can be nearly certain that it will be a clean, modern taxi, wit…

What everyone is telling you is that your experience is not the "average case"...

No that's what knee-jerk Uber defenders are writing who refuse to grant taxis any credit for being good, useful services.

These responses aren't reporting average case experiences with level headed analysis.

They are just one-sidedly saying everything is bad about taxis, including "corruption" even, and how thankful they are Uber "disrupted" them, etc.

It all reads very much like paid social engineering by Uber. I'm sure that's not it, and they are just strong fans defending a company they like.

But the fact that it's all written just like social engineering spam us a good indication that it's not describing realistic, average-case experiences of most taxi users.

Re: Uber Hasn't Had an Effect on Drunken-Driving Deaths, Study Finds

#54

Post by silveira » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 3:04 PM UTC

Maybe the group of people who drink and are responsible enough to call a Uber does not significantly overlaps with the group who drinks and are irresponsible enough to drive.

Re: Uber Hasn't Had an Effect on Drunken-Driving Deaths, Study Finds

#55

Post by p4wnc6 » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 3:09 PM UTC

subway wrote: post #51

p4wnc6 wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

More than one taxi is clean. Fewer than 80% of taxi card readers are broken. No one will believe your claim of being blacklisted unless you give proof, and taxi services have hardly been "smashed into the ground" by Uber. I continue to enjoy using taxis in every urban area I travel to, and look forward to the way taxis keep competition pressure high for Uber by adopting various changes to make their level of service…

No one will believe your claim of consistent reliable service without proof. The taxi industry has fucked its own reputation quite thoroughly.

No, the taxi services (in Boston, anyway, which qualifies all of my comments) have an average-to-good reputation. Uber tries to steer opinion against it, but since people have perfectly fine experiences with taxis most of the time, that doesn't work.

Also, there is no singular reputation that represents all taxi services. Your idea that all taxi services have a bad reputation only further makes your argument unbelievable. A mom & pop business operating a few taxis in a small suburb is way different than a highly regulated city taxi service competing for medallions. Taxis in some cities are always good, while in other cities they are always bad. Taxis in some countries aren't regulated well enough, making them unsafe, but then in others they are regulated and safe.

"The taxi industry" is (mostly) just a fiction that Uber enthusiasts make up. It certainly is when it comes to taxi service reputations, which vary locally.

Re: Uber Hasn't Had an Effect on Drunken-Driving Deaths, Study Finds

#56

Post by p4wnc6 » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 3:11 PM UTC

markatkinson wrote: post #42

abritinthebay wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What everyone is telling you is that your experience is not the "average case"...

Ha. This was an odd thread to read, the averages just aren't averaging out. Try living in Cape Town. Before Uber arrived here taxi drivers were straight up extortionists. I mean that in the literal sense. I used to have to pay anywhere for R100 to R150 minimum. Uber now averages about R50 - R60, and the experience is a pleasant one. So with my other side of the world experiences in mind I can see how something simila…

My comments were only meant to apply to Boston. I fully agree that there can be some locations with consistently bad taxi service. Boston isn't such a place (nor are most cities in the US), but others could be.

Re: Uber Hasn't Had an Effect on Drunken-Driving Deaths, Study Finds

#57

Post by p4wnc6 » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 3:21 PM UTC

jazzyk wrote: post #50

p4wnc6 wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Given that I easily rode in a hundred taxis all over Boston, Cambridge, Somerville, Brookline, and Chestnut Hill, it would be extremely statistically unlikely that I just happened to get only the far above average good experiences each time. The anecdote I described also matches the general experiences of all my friends and family as well, with occasional outliers (both good and bad), so I feel very confident in sayi…

Clean, modern taxi, polite driver? In Boston, MA? You must be kidding, sir. Before Uber, every cab I took was smelly, the cars were late 1970s models, sour drivers, etc. Cabs have gotten a lot better, thanks to Uber.

No, I wasn't kidding. My cab experiences in Boston, going back to 2008, well before any Uber competition can apply, have always been good -- perfectly normal with no serious complaints. I'm not saying the cab drivers poured me a glass of champagne or something, just that they had clean, newer cars with functioning card readers, they were on time, and I didn't stand in very long lines except a few times at the airport.

It is very telling that when a person describes his taxis experiences in a super boring, uncontroversial and simple manner: i.e. that the taxis are just normal cars with credit card readers and you should expect a perfectly normal experience if you get in one -- then everyone here acts like I'm giving some kind of gushing, outrageous praise to taxis, and acts indignant that I don't describe taxis as basically the car Fred Flintstone drove but with killer bees inside.

It's crazy that people are so adamant to do social engineering for Uber that they won't even agree to entirely uncontroversial claims, like most taxis in Boston are clean or have functioning card readers -- things which are indisputably accurate.

I'm not saying you should dislike Uber. I'm not saying you should ride in a taxi. I'm not saying the taxi services are perfect. I'm not saying there are zero bad taxi experiences.

I'm only saying that most taxi experiences in Boston are perfectly uneventful, normal rides that completely meet the expectation of the riders, and don't suffer from the hyperbolic criticisms here.

Re: Uber Hasn't Had an Effect on Drunken-Driving Deaths, Study Finds

#58

Post by unclenoriega » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 3:43 PM UTC

xupybd wrote: post #15

Totally off topic, but totally bugging me. Why is it (in this case) Effect not affect?

It seems like it should be clear if you read the definitions. Perhaps if you explain why you think it should be 'affect', you can get a better explanation.

Re: Uber Hasn't Had an Effect on Drunken-Driving Deaths, Study Finds

#59

Post by eropple » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 4:02 PM UTC

p4wnc6 wrote: post #53

abritinthebay wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What everyone is telling you is that your experience is not the "average case"...

No that's what knee-jerk Uber defenders are writing who refuse to grant taxis any credit for being good, useful services. These responses aren't reporting average case experiences with level headed analysis. They are just one-sidedly saying everything is bad about taxis, including "corruption" even, and how thankful they are Uber "disrupted" them, etc. It all reads very much like paid social engineering by Uber. I'm…

I'm not a fan--I use them because the alternatives are terrible. I use Uber, and I use Lyft, and I use Fasten the most (because they're still trying to establish market share and so the deals are great). But I use them primarily because Boston taxis are straight garbage that cannot be trusted to get you where you want to go on time and without hassles, and they want a price premium for the experience. This isn't the case in many other cities I've gone to (aside from the price premium part, which is universal in America), but it is in Boston.

But we're the "social engineering commenters" because we're rolling eyes at the idea that dealing with cabs is pleasant. We're shills. I don't think I've ever said this here, but: good grief, dude, get a grip, reality is slipping you.

Re: Uber Hasn't Had an Effect on Drunken-Driving Deaths, Study Finds

#60

Post by kaishiro » Sat, Jul 30, 2016, 4:18 PM UTC

p4wnc6 wrote: post #52

kaishiro wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree on this one. It's the first I've ever heard of a satisfied taxi customer in Boston but I'm glad to hear there's at least one!

It's not just me though. Dozens of friends, family members, classmates, and coworkers all described the same experiences I've had whenever the topic came up. The average-case taxi ride in Boston is quite good.

Dozens of friends, family members, classmates, and coworkers of mine (not to mention the majority of users in this thread) have described the same experiences I've had as well. Guess we'll call it a wash?