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Uber London loses licence to operate

bbc.co.uk

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Re: Uber London loses licence to operate

#441

Post by walshemj »

notyourday wrote: post #279
dx034 wrote: post #205

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You didn't get mugged. Please don't downplay muggings. Getting mugged is much worse than paying too much because of a software error. Tfl always reimburses and they pay out to any bank account, you just have to call them for the details. I can understand that it's annoying but that wasn't mugging. Did you report the faulty purple reader? Those are used by several thousand people per day, I've never seen card readers…

Wait. What? In 2017? There are instructions and I have to report broken equipment? I have to figure out instructions on payment system?! There's no button to handle it all on my phone? Cabs should either operate as well as Uber or die. Instead of figuring out how to become as good or better than Uber they are trying to push Uber out. That just means someone else would show up.

They do in the uk in my experience I call them up tell them where I want to go I get a SMS when they dispatch the cab and another when it arrives.

Only problem is during the school run time as many parents don't want "Oliver" or "Lucinda" to slum it with the poor kids on the school bus

Re: Uber London loses licence to operate

#442

Post by walshemj »

lmm wrote: post #407
vizzah wrote: post #181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You can downvote, but I hate cyclists in cities , because many of them break road rules. They think of themselves as neither pedestrians, nor vehicles. When they drive on pavements, they presume being pedestrian and expect to be treated equally (even though they operate a large mass of steel, often with high speeds, enough to cause serious injuries). When they are on the road, they like to be pedestrians and cross tr…

I've seen many cyclists go through red lights in cases where doing so is obviously safe. But for comparison I don't think I've met a single car driver who obeyed speed limits, indeed they seem affronted when I raise that question.

I have never seen in London a car driver run a red light but I regularly see cyclists blast through a red light at > 20mph and it is always the ones on fixies or racing bikes not actual bikes built for commuting.

I have also seen bikes blast through pedestrian refuges during the rush hour

Re: Uber London loses licence to operate

#443

Post by robk »

PaulRobinson wrote: post #189

Londoner here. The license is not being renewed not because TfL isn't interested in innovation (they actively encourage it), not to retain power for the black cab drivers, and not because London isn't interested in companies like Uber operating here. It's because of the rapes. The Metropolitan Police (the part of the UK police force that polices London), has objected to their license. In 2015 alone, they had to deal…

I would deeply miss them if Uber went away. Speak for yourself. I prefer not to overpay black cab drivers with consistently bad, racist attitudes. I think in a fair world the taxi drivers should be available for those that want them (like Mercedes Benz Uber Black options).

Re: Uber London loses licence to operate

#444

Post by sjcsjc »

boothead wrote: post #440
tomblomfield wrote: post #372

I don't think the Mayor of London or TfL really expect to shut down Uber. It would be a deeply unpopular move. There's an acceptance that Uber has improved things for riders, albeit at the expense of the Black Cab industry, and London wants to welcome innovative technology firms. However, I also suspect that Uber hasn't been as co-operative as TfL would like on several issues mentioned, and so this feels like a warni…

I already got the begging email asking me to sign the petition. You're right that this feels like the wrong tone!

I signed it.

Re: Uber London loses licence to operate

#445

Post by dwild »

scaryclam wrote: post #399
JonAtkinson wrote: post #340

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> In the entire history of the hackney carriage (black cab) license - going back to 1662 - I know of only one case of a driver having been prosecuted for rape, about 5 years ago. That's absolute bollocks. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Worboys

Is it possible that that's the case PaulRobinson was referring to? A few years earlier than he thinks but it's plausable no?

Someone else gave that link: https://www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/over-400-london-cab-dr...

Over 400 that same year he quoted.

Re: Uber London loses licence to operate

#446

Post by randomsearch »

Anecdotal evidence, but I can confirm black cabs are pretty rubbish and extremely expensive in London. Broken card machines ("broken"?) are a thing. Friends complain similarly.

Uber experiences all good so far.

Not an Uber lover here, just astounded by people reporting that black cabs offer a decent service. I really like the design of black cabs, but since those bad experiences I have avoided them completely.

Re: Uber London loses licence to operate

#447

Post by irpapakons »

I have switched to using black cabs with Gett, I find it a much better experience. I like knowing what to expect, lots of space, the drivers are professionals and there's no pressure to chat. For me that's a good thing, I prefer to have a bit of free time instead of a social interaction with a stranger.

Re: Uber London loses licence to operate

#448

Post by meigwilym »

microcolonel wrote: post #165
Nursie wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> Who said anything about them seeking to become a worldwide cab monopoly? They behave as if they are attempting this, IMHO. >> They are a cab company I believe, depending on which way the wind was blowing, they might dispute this. Their argument is that they are not a cab company, merely a service for connecting drivers and potential passengers. This is how they avoid pesky things like employment laws. >> Any other…

> They behave as if they are attempting this, IMHO. Every rational company should behave as if they're attempting to become a monopoly, this is a completely meaningless point to argue either way.

If people acted with the rationality of companies, we'd live in a society of psychopaths.

Business wasn't always like this, and doesn't have to be either.

Re: Uber London loses licence to operate

#449

Post by csomar »

mattlondon wrote: post #389
PaulRobinson wrote: post #189

Londoner here. The license is not being renewed not because TfL isn't interested in innovation (they actively encourage it), not to retain power for the black cab drivers, and not because London isn't interested in companies like Uber operating here. It's because of the rapes. The Metropolitan Police (the part of the UK police force that polices London), has objected to their license. In 2015 alone, they had to deal…

> In the entire history of the hackney carriage (black cab) license - going back to 1662 - I know of only one case of a driver having been prosecuted for rape, about 5 years ago. Pardon? John Warboys - a registered black cab driver - was convicted of 12 rapes in 2009, and was thought to have carried out over 100. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Worboys David perry - a registered black cab driver - was convicted of…

Yeah, I felt it is pretty weird when the OP claimed that Black Cabs don't rape women (I don't mean the car itself)

What would be a useful metric is: Rape per capita for Uber and Black Cabs. I'm too lazy to search for that, but if someone comes up with the data, he'll have a stronger argument.

Re: Uber London loses licence to operate

#450

Post by simon_o »

vizzah wrote: post #181
crtasm wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Their previously voiced views on cyclists should be taken into account though. http://road.cc/content/news/56999-addison-lee-chairman-airs-... The Keen Group have always been reliable for us (but could hold similar views for all I know)

You can downvote, but I hate cyclists in cities , because many of them break road rules. They think of themselves as neither pedestrians, nor vehicles. When they drive on pavements, they presume being pedestrian and expect to be treated equally (even though they operate a large mass of steel, often with high speeds, enough to cause serious injuries). When they are on the road, they like to be pedestrians and cross tr…

Then let's ban cars in cities, considering the harm car traffic has caused to inner cities andvtgeir inhabitants.

Oh, and don't complain that infrastructure built for cars sucks when used by bikes.

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