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Uber London loses licence to operate

bbc.co.uk

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Re: Uber London loses licence to operate

#41

Post by gtsteve »

iamben wrote: post #35
scaryclam wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To be honest, few people here in London bother with taxis. Public transport is very good, can be faster than sitting in traffic, and is cheaper. Most folks ordering taxis either don't know where they are going, missed the last train or are wealthy enough to not care about the cost. Uber literally made no impact on the quality if life to your average Londoner and won't be missed.

This seems rather subjective? Anecdotally, many of my friends and colleagues use Uber frequently, especially at night.

Anecdotally, my friends do as well.

I used to take public transport but at the end of a night out, a cab is a lot nicer so long as it's within my price comfort point.

A black cab isn't really in that comfort zone for me.

Re: Uber London loses licence to operate

#42

Post by googleme »

scaryclam wrote: post #28
k-mcgrady wrote: post #3

I don't understand why Uber can't get their shit together. In the US they have competition from Lyft and I can almost understand why they have to push the boundaries. In London they have very little competition and therefore don't need to engage is controversial business practices. Personally I don't see what my alternative will be if their service ceases, they have that little competition. Although I am kind of anno…

To be honest, few people here in London bother with taxis. Public transport is very good, can be faster than sitting in traffic, and is cheaper. Most folks ordering taxis either don't know where they are going, missed the last train or are wealthy enough to not care about the cost. Uber literally made no impact on the quality if life to your average Londoner and won't be missed.

I could not disagree more - often times, especially if travelling with multiple people it is far more convenient, comfortable and can even be more affordable than taking public transport. While I agree that London has great public transport, Uber has been a game changer for myself and many people I know.

Re: Uber London loses licence to operate

#43

Post by pavlakoos »

kuschku wrote: post #29
pavlakoos wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But there is a license for that: a driving license. And the one which is given allows to drive a car with passengers inside. It should be enough...

Actually it doesn’t. In many places your regular driving license becomes void as soon as you have a single paying passenger, and it becomes driving without a license, and you get a fine. Germany is one such place. Good news is, a driving license for with passengers is just an additional test that will overall set you back less than 100 Euros. And, additionally, your insurance becomes void as soon as you have a paying…

That's a new thing to me. I was driving in Germany several times with passengers and I didn't know my current driving license isn't good for it.

I even rented a car at the airport and Hertz clerk haven't mentioned anything, despite seeing me approaching with friends. They only asked if there are drivers, not passengers.

So how does it work?

Re: Uber London loses licence to operate

#45

Post by Nursie »

iamben wrote: post #31
sambe wrote: post #16

When I have reported black cab drivers misleading passengers, lying about pricing and regulations or bus drivers driving dangerously and being rude to everyone, TfL are totally uninterested. They give the impression that they know the scams operate and don't care. It's an interesting comparison with my Uber experience, which has been almost flawless and issues are usually fixed by Uber themselves promptly.

Last time my (getting rather elderly) mother came to London I told her and her husband to get an Uber as it was easier than them standing in the rain trying to hail a cab. They flatly refused. They'd been told by a black cab driver the night before there was a 'strong possibility' they would get raped or robbed by 'foreign' drivers.

Why not suggest one of London's myriad of other options, which don't have so much in the way of unethical baggage?

Re: Uber London loses licence to operate

#46

Post by gtsteve »

dogma1138 wrote: post #32
gtsteve wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's MyTaxi, Gett and Addison Lee has an app. I used to use Hailo before it became MyTaxi. It's certainly not as cost-effective but what I did like were the flat-rate rides you could get. They weren't black cabs, but more like Uber Luxes or Uber Execs and probably 20% cheaper than black cabs. With Uber gone, I'm sure the market would provide something else.

And Kabbee which just unifies all car hires. In London Uber was the cheapest for short drives < 15-20 min for pretty much everything beyond that the reverse bid system or Kabbee provided cheaper fares.

Thanks, I hadn't heard of that firm.

Looks like I might be needing it.

Re: Uber London loses licence to operate

#47

Post by k-mcgrady »

scaryclam wrote: post #28
k-mcgrady wrote: post #3

I don't understand why Uber can't get their shit together. In the US they have competition from Lyft and I can almost understand why they have to push the boundaries. In London they have very little competition and therefore don't need to engage is controversial business practices. Personally I don't see what my alternative will be if their service ceases, they have that little competition. Although I am kind of anno…

To be honest, few people here in London bother with taxis. Public transport is very good, can be faster than sitting in traffic, and is cheaper. Most folks ordering taxis either don't know where they are going, missed the last train or are wealthy enough to not care about the cost. Uber literally made no impact on the quality if life to your average Londoner and won't be missed.

>> Uber literally made no impact on the quality if life to your average Londoner and won't be missed.

As a Londoner I dispute that claim. It's made a huge difference for a lot of people. Until the night tube's arrival last year getting home from late nights out was expensive, difficult, or impossible. It's quite useful when moving flat - something younger Londoners tend to do quite a lot. I had to go somewhere with some heavy equipment last week and if it weren't for Uber I would have spent a fortune on taxi's. When I was ill for several months which prevented me taking the tube I used Uber to get to/from work. It was expensive but affordable. Taxi's would have been too expensive and I would have been screwed.

Finally - I received half a dozen messages from friends within minutes of the news being announced. Looks like it will be missed.

Re: Uber London loses licence to operate

#49

Post by Nursie »

w4tson wrote: post #37
xedarius wrote: post #20

Is this the first domino? Will France (and other European countries) then turn around and say, ah oui we too don't think Uber is fit to operate. Uber is pretty crappy in London, I had one the other night and the guy wasn't even the guy who's picture was on the app (yes the driver did not match the registered uber driver). This is before we even get onto the fact that he didn't know where he was going.

This happens all the time in black cabs. My wife and I rely on uber all the time. It feels right for a city like London. This is a step backwards in my opinion I’d like to add that most black cab drivers make out like their card machine doesn’t work. It’s a total cash scam to avoid VAT. I’ve had a black cab deny picking me up before because I didn’t want taking very far (I had a twisted ankle and just wanted to short…

If the meter is on, it's reported and recorded income, is it not?
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