Why doesn't Uber/Lyft support actual carpooling so that if I know I need to go somewhere I can offers other people a ride to/from nearby locations. Given the traffic in large cities and the number of single cars going the same direction at rush hour it would make a lot of sense. Adding the option for a longer wait like this would make it easier to manage for the commuting driver. I guess the issue is it'll annoy the more professional drivers but for users it would be good.
Uber is experimenting with letting riders wait longer for a cheaper fare
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Re: Uber is experimenting with letting riders wait longer for a cheaper fare
#42I just wanted to drop a note to say I think Uber is doing a good job, all things considered. Many public transit companies have been around for decades and haven't figured out how to scale up to the kind of service Uber is providing. 4B rides in 2017 is pretty amazing. If I understand the math correctly, BART claims about 126 million rides (2015) and cost $906M (~$7 a ride, comparable to some uber pool fares)
Public transit companies don't really have the option of scaling up just by adding another city to a dropdown.
Re: Uber is experimenting with letting riders wait longer for a cheaper fare
#43Earlier quoted context omitted.
Google and Apple do some tricks based on WiFi to fix GPS in dense urban areas. Raw gps is basically unusable in these areas.
Since you have to set a pickup pin explicitly, how does GPS matter at all, here?
Drivers sometimes go to where the live GPS signal tells them you are instead of the pin. Likewise the pin is sometimes required to be in dumb spots (like the airport) even when there's a much more convenient spot 100 feet down the street.
Re: Uber is experimenting with letting riders wait longer for a cheaper fare
#44Based on my rides recently I have seen the quality of drivers plummet on both Uber and Lyft. I'd be much more willing to wait (and maybe even pay) for a higher quality driver. Having a driver who cannot follow a GPS and takes you in a circle 3-4 times around the airport or does not speak English well enough to understand your request to stop on the right instead of the left like the GPS shows can be quite frustrating…
I’ll settle for waiting 5 min extra for a driver that doesn’t have to stop for gas.
Re: Uber is experimenting with letting riders wait longer for a cheaper fare
#45This is pretty much what express pool does already. You sit on your thumbs for 2 minutes while the app pretends to do a search and then the car comes right to you anyway, and you pay less.
Re: Uber is experimenting with letting riders wait longer for a cheaper fare
#46Hah! I remember this was an interview question for one of my PMs that was looking to join Uber.
Without breaking NDA, it was something along the lines of "Why would Uber let customers wait longer?"
It's an interesting product problem but I felt that it would be more relevant for an economist to analyze, given that it's more of a supply/demand equilibrium challenge.
Re: Uber is experimenting with letting riders wait longer for a cheaper fare
#47I just wanted to drop a note to say I think Uber is doing a good job, all things considered. Many public transit companies have been around for decades and haven't figured out how to scale up to the kind of service Uber is providing. 4B rides in 2017 is pretty amazing. If I understand the math correctly, BART claims about 126 million rides (2015) and cost $906M (~$7 a ride, comparable to some uber pool fares)
> If I understand the math correctly, BART claims about 126 million rides (2015) and cost $906M (~$7 a ride, comparable to some uber pool fares) Scaling a mobile app is trivial compared to running a transit company. BART owns/maintains infrastructure (including an underwater tunnel) and vehicles, provides benefits (health, retirement, etc) to their drivers, and operates a multi-jurisdictional police force. Uber meanw…
I'm no Uber fanboy, but the app provides on-demand, door to door transportation service for (more or less) the entire BART market area.
Re: Uber is experimenting with letting riders wait longer for a cheaper fare
#48Earlier quoted context omitted.
> If I understand the math correctly, BART claims about 126 million rides (2015) and cost $906M (~$7 a ride, comparable to some uber pool fares) Scaling a mobile app is trivial compared to running a transit company. BART owns/maintains infrastructure (including an underwater tunnel) and vehicles, provides benefits (health, retirement, etc) to their drivers, and operates a multi-jurisdictional police force. Uber meanw…
In the same breath you complain that they don't pay their drivers enough and that their service is too expensive. Drivers aren't going to get more than a few percentage points increase without increasing the price to the end user.
This seems like a way of saying Uber does not actually have a possible business model.
(Not saying I agree or disagree.)
Re: Uber is experimenting with letting riders wait longer for a cheaper fare
#49Earlier quoted context omitted.
> If I understand the math correctly, BART claims about 126 million rides (2015) and cost $906M (~$7 a ride, comparable to some uber pool fares) Scaling a mobile app is trivial compared to running a transit company. BART owns/maintains infrastructure (including an underwater tunnel) and vehicles, provides benefits (health, retirement, etc) to their drivers, and operates a multi-jurisdictional police force. Uber meanw…
In the same breath you complain that they don't pay their drivers enough and that their service is too expensive. Drivers aren't going to get more than a few percentage points increase without increasing the price to the end user.
"In the same breath you complain that they don't pay their drivers enough and that their service is too expensive."
You seem to present that as a contradiction, but the obvious conclusion is that the GP believes Uber keeps an unfair share of the ride fees.
Based on my vague internet research, it appears Uber keeps 20-25% plus various fees, like how credit card settlement charges work, which can add up to 40%+ for some rides.
Re: Uber is experimenting with letting riders wait longer for a cheaper fare
#50Based on my rides recently I have seen the quality of drivers plummet on both Uber and Lyft. I'd be much more willing to wait (and maybe even pay) for a higher quality driver. Having a driver who cannot follow a GPS and takes you in a circle 3-4 times around the airport or does not speak English well enough to understand your request to stop on the right instead of the left like the GPS shows can be quite frustrating…
Here in Greece, we recently lost Uber. We're back to taxis. It's incredible how bad an experience those are after going back to them.
Cars that smell like cigarette (that's if the driver isn't outright smoking in your face), don't have AC, are old, dirty and with uncomfortable ripped-up seats.
Send your lower-quality drivers my way. I miss not wanting to vomit whenever I take a cab.