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Uber to pay $272M to Australian taxi operators

smh.com.au

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Re: Uber to pay $272M to Australian taxi operators

#101

Post by jncfhnb »

alistairSH wrote: post #96
tensor wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Toronto is notorious for this too. Either the credit card machine is broken and you must pay too much cash, or the credit card machine steals your card number, or you are refused a ride because it’s not far enough. Even travelling through Europe I’ve been refused a ride because it was too short, and got overcharged by 2-3x once. I’d use Uber at this point even if it’s more expensive than a taxi.

Either the credit card machine is broken and you must pay too much cash... Wouldn't you just respond "Sorry, no cash!" and walk away? It's literally true for me - I rarely have more than $10 cash on hand, because I never need it.

Because they’re threatening

Re: Uber to pay $272M to Australian taxi operators

#102

Post by somishere »

tianqi wrote: post #71

This is like compensating purse snatchers because the promotion of mobile payments reduces their income. Sydney's taxi is a shame to this wonderful city. I still remember when I first just arrived in Sydney, I took a taxi from the airport to Waterloo and was charged $95, which made me fearful of Sydney prices. It took me time to realise that I had just run into a scam and that the ride should have cost just $20+. Now…

Meh. Last time I got an uber from Sydney airport the guy made us get in at the entry to the multi store car park across from the rideshare pickup. I just assumed because he didn't want to pay a fee. He then couldn't reverse out because someone turned up behind him and so did a run through the car park. Had a strange chat with him on the drive into town where he tried to tell me he was a student and had only been in Sydney for a couple of months, but it was totally suspicious, he kept getting carried away and relaxing into a undeniable western Sydney accent. My wife was in the car next to me texting me like crazy that something was up but I was just playing along. No idea what the go was in the end. Unsettling but otherwise uneventful trip. I didn't tip. I avoid uber from the airport now and just get a cab or a train. Price is about the same.

Edit: I should probably add that I don't avoid uber completely, still use it when travelling, esp. if I'm somewhere without a taxi rank. But I prefer a cab from the airport. It's genuinely less hassle.

Re: Uber to pay $272M to Australian taxi operators

#103

Post by bigDinosaur »

tsujamin wrote: post #91
tianqi wrote: post #71

This is like compensating purse snatchers because the promotion of mobile payments reduces their income. Sydney's taxi is a shame to this wonderful city. I still remember when I first just arrived in Sydney, I took a taxi from the airport to Waterloo and was charged $95, which made me fearful of Sydney prices. It took me time to realise that I had just run into a scam and that the ride should have cost just $20+. Now…

Sydney taxis are extortionate and often operate illegally around the airport, but also taxi plates in Australia costed $100,000’s (on the market, not sure how much when released by the government) and that investment got trashed by ride-share entry. From that perspective I’ve got some sympathy.

Why should we have sympathy because of an artificial constraint on the supply of taxi drivers? They're really nothing special except by being in an artificially protected market.

Re: Uber to pay $272M to Australian taxi operators

#104

Post by somishere »

ghoomketu wrote: post #64
resolutebat wrote: post #36

It's worth noting that Australian taxis are generally terrible . They're expensive and notorious for ripoffs, particularly from the airport: scenic routes, bogus surcharges, "broken" credit card machines (plus 5% surcharge when they do work), drivers refusing destinations (by law they're not allowed to), and to top it all off they're not even safe, with taxi drivers responsible for a long string of sexual assaults. U…

Same here in India. A lot of people hate Uber but speaking for me personally it's been a godsend upgrade over the black yellow taxis we had here before. I believe they are the #1 reason why foreigner tourists are scared of coming to India. The amount of scam and harrasment done by these old taxi drivers is just another level. The luxury and straightforwardness of app taxis is unparalleled to what we used to have befo…

I loved getting taxis in India for exactly these reasons, I used to get taken to random shops way out of the way of where I needed to go ... I'd just go along along with it, total adventure time! But I can see how it could grate after the novelty wore off. Or if you were maybe being a bit cautious as a traveller.

Re: Uber to pay $272M to Australian taxi operators

#105

Post by alistairSH »

jncfhnb wrote: post #101
alistairSH wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Either the credit card machine is broken and you must pay too much cash... Wouldn't you just respond "Sorry, no cash!" and walk away? It's literally true for me - I rarely have more than $10 cash on hand, because I never need it.

Because they’re threatening

I guess it depends on the location. I had a car service pull this on my at Denver International a few years ago. He wasn't asking for more than the flat-fee from downtown to the airport, so I hit the ATM and gave him the cash. But if I had been in a hurry, he would have been SOL, I would have gone straight to security and not given it a second thought.

Re: Uber to pay $272M to Australian taxi operators

#106

Post by notyourwork »

tensor wrote: post #74
tianqi wrote: post #71

This is like compensating purse snatchers because the promotion of mobile payments reduces their income. Sydney's taxi is a shame to this wonderful city. I still remember when I first just arrived in Sydney, I took a taxi from the airport to Waterloo and was charged $95, which made me fearful of Sydney prices. It took me time to realise that I had just run into a scam and that the ride should have cost just $20+. Now…

Toronto is notorious for this too. Either the credit card machine is broken and you must pay too much cash, or the credit card machine steals your card number, or you are refused a ride because it’s not far enough. Even travelling through Europe I’ve been refused a ride because it was too short, and got overcharged by 2-3x once. I’d use Uber at this point even if it’s more expensive than a taxi.

I’ve had good luck with broken credit card machines working when I declare I have no cash. Maybe it’s because of my stature and/or luck.

Re: Uber to pay $272M to Australian taxi operators

#107

Post by rchaud »

tensor wrote: post #74
tianqi wrote: post #71

This is like compensating purse snatchers because the promotion of mobile payments reduces their income. Sydney's taxi is a shame to this wonderful city. I still remember when I first just arrived in Sydney, I took a taxi from the airport to Waterloo and was charged $95, which made me fearful of Sydney prices. It took me time to realise that I had just run into a scam and that the ride should have cost just $20+. Now…

Toronto is notorious for this too. Either the credit card machine is broken and you must pay too much cash, or the credit card machine steals your card number, or you are refused a ride because it’s not far enough. Even travelling through Europe I’ve been refused a ride because it was too short, and got overcharged by 2-3x once. I’d use Uber at this point even if it’s more expensive than a taxi.

I'm in Toronto and never experienced any of this. Even before Uber, if a drivers' credit card machine wasn't working, they'd tell me before I got in. 95% of the time there was no issue with their machine. I used legitimate taxicab companies - if one wasn't available on the street corner, you could call their dispatch and they'd send one over.

Re: Uber to pay $272M to Australian taxi operators

#108

Post by somishere »

Nursie wrote: post #70
resolutebat wrote: post #36

It's worth noting that Australian taxis are generally terrible . They're expensive and notorious for ripoffs, particularly from the airport: scenic routes, bogus surcharges, "broken" credit card machines (plus 5% surcharge when they do work), drivers refusing destinations (by law they're not allowed to), and to top it all off they're not even safe, with taxi drivers responsible for a long string of sexual assaults. U…

> It's worth noting that Australian taxis are generally terrible. Over here in Western Australia they are generally better than Uber. You know what sets the traditional operators apart from Uber in Perth? They show up That simple. You book a cab, you get a cab, more or less when you want it. You request an Uber and someone might come. They might not. They might accept the ride and then drive in circles for 15 minutes…

You've nailed it.

Uber went south in Cairns in exactly the same way about when Didi and the others came out.

Call a cab and it turns up. Reliability is everything.

Re: Uber to pay $272M to Australian taxi operators

#109

Post by rchaud »

jncfhnb wrote: post #101
alistairSH wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Either the credit card machine is broken and you must pay too much cash... Wouldn't you just respond "Sorry, no cash!" and walk away? It's literally true for me - I rarely have more than $10 cash on hand, because I never need it.

Because they’re threatening

Threatening? Most taxicabs have cameras inside, and I've never heard of a driver getting violent with a passenger over an inability to pay (different from a refusal to pay), considering their picture and cab ID are prominently displayed inside the cab.

Re: Uber to pay $272M to Australian taxi operators

#110

Post by crowcroft »

mihaic wrote: post #59
xeromal wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

[flagged]

'Being forced' is doing a lot of work in that statement.

What if I'm asked to drive an employee and I willingly want to help out and drive someone around, and I then simply file expenses and get reimbursed for mileage?

Are taxi companies going to sue every company that has ever done something like that? Two sales reps in one car driving around – sue them as well?

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