NYE and Uber

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Stragoon_sl

shitlord
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0
Long time lurker, first time poster, bla bla bla.

So my friend and I want to take our two dates downtown instead of a house party and want to get shitty so we are going to try cabbing it this year. I have heard of the app Uber which is essentially, "Yes, you too can be a cab driver" and wonder how people like it? Is it usually cheaper then using a state run cab or about the same? How reliable is it?

I have already downloaded the app and put in my CC number and apparently there is no way to reserve a ride for a certain time. I can imagine that New Years is crazy busy so should we try it and hope someone is around or just say fuck it and arrange a cab?

The bar we are going to is about 20 miles one way. How accurate is the price estimate in the app and does it go up and down depending on how busy people are in the area, fixed regardless, depend on which city, etc?

Thanks
 
Kuriin

Kuriin

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Just know that by using Uber, you agree to any increase of prices that they may use on you. NYEmaybe one of those times where they hike the price up (I would recommend Googling Uber and prices) to over $200.
 
Fifey

Fifey

Trakanon Raider
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And hopefully you don't get in a serious car crash because you go through the car owners insurance so they most likely are under insured.
 
ronne

ronne

Nǐ hǎo, yǒu jīn zi ma?
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They are insured plenty, Uber requires it to drive for them.

I don't know what city you're in, but Uber in Chicago is awesome as long as you stay away from their peak hours/rates or whatever they call it. In general it's cheaper/faster than a cab around here for late night or mid day rides, but anything between like 4-6pm costs 10x what it normally does and just isn't worth it. And yea, on new years I wouldn't be surprised to see a 20 mile Uber ride cost a few hundred.
 
Lanx

Lanx

<Prior Amod>
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friends who use uber/ lyft(get that app too) say prices jump crazy at 2am to 4am (usually last call), expect the same nye, also DON"T FUCKING TRAVEL in manhattan using cars during NYE, you'll be sorry.
 
Alex

Alex

Still a Music Elitist
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See if Flywheel is available where you are. It hooks you up directly with cabbies. No surge pricing. Uber will be awful on NYE.
 
Jysin

Jysin

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Been said but needs repeating... Uber's business model is based on surge pricing. NYE is probably the most expensive Uber rates of the year. Outside of that, on any normal use, I love Uber's service.
 
Vinen

Vinen

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Stragoon_sl said:
Long time lurker, first time poster, bla bla bla.

So my friend and I want to take our two dates downtown instead of a house party and want to get shitty so we are going to try cabbing it this year. I have heard of the app Uber which is essentially, "Yes, you too can be a cab driver" and wonder how people like it? Is it usually cheaper then using a state run cab or about the same? How reliable is it?

I have already downloaded the app and put in my CC number and apparently there is no way to reserve a ride for a certain time. I can imagine that New Years is crazy busy so should we try it and hope someone is around or just say fuck it and arrange a cab?

The bar we are going to is about 20 miles one way. How accurate is the price estimate in the app and does it go up and down depending on how busy people are in the area, fixed regardless, depend on which city, etc?

Thanks
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Sounds like a terrible idea.
Is it possible for you to take the subway into and out of the city?

You will end up paying many hundreds of dollars as the surge pricing will probably go to 20x that night. (Or whatever their max is... I don't use Uber anymore.)

Honestly, it would be cheaper for you to spend $500 or whatever the absurd cost of a hotel is right now for that night... (if they are not all 100% booked)
 
Lanx

Lanx

<Prior Amod>
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also if i remember, a few stations are blocked off near times square, they're just skipped. where are you coming from, where are you going to?
 
P

Prime_sl

shitlord
71
0
Uber is awesome, I use it at least once a week in LA, but NYE will probably be super expensive. Halloween was like 4x surge pricing here and I have to imagine NYE in NYC will be way more. Your best bet might be to call a normal cab company and schedule a pickup.

Also to anyone that complains about how it is shady, have you ever been in a normal cab? Do you really feel safe and insured? Almost all of my ubers are new cars and the drivers are nice and speak English.
 
Vinen

Vinen

God is dead
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Prime_sl said:
Uber is awesome, I use it at least once a week in LA, but NYE will probably be super expensive. Halloween was like 4x surge pricing here and I have to imagine NYE in NYC will be way more. Your best bet might be to call a normal cab company and schedule a pickup.

Also to anyone that complains about how it is shady, have you ever been in a normal cab? Do you really feel safe and insured? Almost all of my ubers are new cars and the drivers are nice and speak English.
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Uber's quality has went downhill. It's hard to find a driver in the Boston area who has any fucking clue where hes going. 99.9% of the time I have to give directions from the starting to end point at almost a turn by turn basis. It's pretty pathetic actually.

Back when they first came out pretty much every driver I called was able to take me from A to B without guidance...
 
Fifey

Fifey

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Ronne_sl said:
They are insured plenty, Uber requires it to drive for them.

I don't know what city you're in, but Uber in Chicago is awesome as long as you stay away from their peak hours/rates or whatever they call it. In general it's cheaper/faster than a cab around here for late night or mid day rides, but anything between like 4-6pm costs 10x what it normally does and just isn't worth it. And yea, on new years I wouldn't be surprised to see a 20 mile Uber ride cost a few hundred.
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Sorta.

Last New Year's Eve, an Uber driver named Syed Muzaffar was driving his car in San Francisco while logged into Uber's app for drivers when he struck and killed a six-year-old girl who was in a crosswalk with her mother and brother. The next day, Uber distanced itself from the accident, posting a somewhat terse*message*on its Web site that offered condolences but also noted that "this tragedy*did not*involve a vehicle or provider doing a trip on the Uber system." The statement was later updated to read, "The driver in question was not providing services on the Uber system during the time of the accident." The subtext, though, was that the accident wasn't strictly Uber's responsibility. While the company could have provided up to a million dollars in liability coverage if an*accident occurred, this applied only to*drivers who had a passenger in the car or were on their way to pick one up; the company later argued that it wasn't liable for the girl's death
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Vinen

Vinen

God is dead
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fifey_sl said:
Sorta.
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They are insured by Uber only when a passenger is in the car. (Maybe if they are heading to a passenger too?... probably not)
In this case, the driver did not have a passenger in the car and thus are not covered by Uber's insurance.

This case is of zero concern for any passenger outside of potentially edge-case ethical reasons (ex: They were heading to a passenger and thus should be on ubers clock). The above article is fail as there is no reason a driver should be covered by Uber if they are not directly performing work for the company at the same time... they don't call out anything other then the driver is logged into ubers system... which honestly means nothing.
 
CaughtCross

CaughtCross

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As said above. Never use Uber on big holidays where everyone is out. Try to find a hotel room, or a hell an Air BnB near where you are going. It will likely be cheaper.
 
Woefully Inept

Woefully Inept

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Uber requires users to confirm the price so there are no surprises but there was still plenty of criticism from riders who felt they'd been unfairly gouged.
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So people know the price up front and still use the service then bitch they were gouged? Don't use the service then. It's like fucking rocket surgery with some people. lol

That Sydney incident was pretty fucked up though. I'll definitely concede that point.
 
Fifey

Fifey

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I just don't like ubers policies, they were not allowed to operate in Portland but they said Fuck you and started operating illegally, forcing the government to slap together regulation for them.
 
Alex

Alex

Still a Music Elitist
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Without the surge pricing it's quite a bit cheaper than a cab. I use Uber pretty regular, but typically avoid it during surge times.
 
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