Uber

[photomatt]

My only concern is if we hit traffic, the cost of Uber would increase. Does that make sense?

Yes. Uber charges 13 cents a minute. It only adds up if you get stuck in serious traffic. That usually only happens if there is an accident or during peak periods.

 

[wm49rs]

Lazy people? Huh?
How did you come to that conclusion?

It wasn't directed at those who drive for Uber....

 

[photomatt]

If you don't mind me asking, what is the usual Uber fare from Disney to Universal?

The Grand Floridian is one of the hotels farthest away from Universal, so let's use that as an example.

Google says the distance is 14.5 miles and the travel time is 17 minutes. Using the formula above, that means the approximate Uber one-way fare is $15.09.

 

[photomatt]

It wasn't directed at those who drive for Uber....

OK.

 

[photomatt]

For what it's worth, I know why Uber charges such low rates, and it's not just to save you money.

Uber takes a percentage of the fare, which is how they make money. If the fare was higher their percentage would be higher. They will claim that lower fares keeps the drivers busier. This is only partly true. A driver can only drive so many miles in an hour. At some point, the lower fare decreases the driver's profit because they can't possibly do any more rides per hour.

The real reason Uber's rates are so low is because they offer so many free rides. Many of the riders I take are first-timers, and their ride is free (paid by Uber). If Uber raised the rates, this would cost them more money. The rates are based on extensive research that shows what price point is the most profitable to them based on the number of free rides they give vs. the revenue they get per ride they don't pay for.

The minute they stop giving out free promo rides the rates will rise substantially.

This will happen soon after they go public. They are basically buying trips by giving them away for free. The number of Uber trips is a marketing tool they use to increase the value of the company. They are manipulating this number by giving away free rides. If you were giving away free rides you would want to pay as little as possible. This is the reason why the fares are so low.

 

[PinnySmart]

The rating system needs improvement. Although there are 5 options, anything less than 5 stars is unacceptable. If a driver has a rating below 4.6 they will get a warning. If their rating does not improve they will be deactivated.

Here is a problem that I have. Let's say I give 12 rides during a day. Easily, 6 won't bother to give a rating at all. So, my rating is only based on riders who take the one second to do it. Now, let's say the other 6 rate me. Most don't know that anything less than 5 is unacceptable, according to Uber. Because of this, some will give 4 stars thinking it's OK. So, as an example, 3 riders will give 4 stars, 3 riders will give 5 stars, and the other 6 won't rate at all. Based on this example, my rating would be 4.5, which is unacceptable to Uber.

My rating used to be 4.96, which is extremely high. Now it's 4.88, and I have not changed anything with my service, appearance, driving habits or car cleanliness. Uber really needs to re-evaluate their rating system. Until they do, please give your driver a 5 star rating unless there is a problem. If there is any type of issue, then a lower rating is certainly justified, but, if there are no issues, then a 5 star rating is appropriate.

That's what I had been told. I always rate 5 stars and honestly I have never had a reason not too. I just used Uber again last night. I had to leave the Dolphin quite late and get to the airport. It is just 100 times better than a cab. My driver was almost like my personal tour guide. He knew exactly when the ticket counters opened and what time security screening opened as well and he volunteered the information I didn't have to drag it out of him like a few cab drivers I've had. I'm not bashing cab drivers, they provide a great service I just prefer Uber. I do wish more people new about the rating system and would actually give an honest rating. It literally takes 5 seconds or less. I also wish I could tip using the app. I wonder if that will ever be possible?

 

[photomatt]

I also wish I could tip using the app. I wonder if that will ever be possible?

Yes, it will be possible. It might happen very soon. A nationwide strike is planned for the weekend of October 16-18. One of the demands is for Uber to add a tip button. Lyft already does this.

The strike is rapidly gaining support and media attention, so you might hear about it soon. I'm not trying to derail this thread, I'm only explaining why the tip button might appear very quickly.

The Dolphin and Hilton Bonnet Creek are the two busiest properties for Uber drivers. On I-drive the two busiest properties are the Hyatt and Hilton. If you are at one of those locations and need an Uber or Lyft you will rarely have to wait more than a few minutes.

 

[xdan0920]

Yes, it will be possible. It might happen very soon. A nationwide strike is planned for the weekend of October 16-18. One of the demands is for Uber to add a tip button. Lyft already does this.

The strike is rapidly gaining support and media attention, so you might hear about it soon. I'm not trying to derail this thread, I'm only explaining why the tip button might appear very quickly.

The Dolphin and Hilton Bonnet Creek are the two busiest properties for Uber drivers. On I-drive the two busiest properties are the Hyatt and Hilton. If you are at one of those locations and need an Uber or Lyft you will rarely have to wait more than a few minutes.

Riders have ratings, right? And you can refuse a pickup for a poorly rated rider, right?

If those two assumptions are correct, then this "optional" tip becomes mandatory in a hurry.

 

[photomatt]

Riders have ratings, right? And you can refuse a pickup for a poorly rated rider, right?

If those two assumptions are correct, then this "optional" tip becomes mandatory in a hurry.

This is a great point. Riders don't have to rate drivers, but drivers must rate riders in order to end the trip and accept the next ride. I have never rated any rider less than 5 stars. Never. Unfortunately, other drivers have started giving a 1 star rating to riders who won't tip. This is unacceptable, but it does happen. I realize that this might make some riders stay away from Uber, but I'm just trying to provide all of the information I can when it comes up.

I never consider a rider rating when picking someone up. When the rates were higher, I never considered anything. I just accepted the trip regardless of where it was. Now that the rates are lower I won't pick up anyone more than 15 minutes away. It's not economically practical to deadhead 15 minutes to pick up someone who might only go down the street. I don't Uber to make lots of money, but I can't Uber and lose money.

 

[Minnie1986]

You're talking about a shuttle, right? The taxi fare is about $47 each way.

Yes, a shuttle.

 

[Minnie1986]

You CAN tip Uber and Lyft drivers. You don't have to, but you can. There is no tip included in the fare. That does not mean you have to tip, but please don't think there is some sort of tip included. That is absolutely not the case.

Never even consider tipping if the service does not warrant it. But, if you think the driver deserves a tip, then you can if you want.

Good to know, because I've had drivers go above & beyond the call of duty and then refuse my tips.

 

[Minnie1986]

The Grand Floridian is one of the hotels farthest away from Universal, so let's use that as an example.

Google says the distance is 14.5 miles and the travel time is 17 minutes. Using the formula above, that means the approximate Uber one-way fare is $15.09.

I may be using Uber instead of a shuttle then, since there are two of us going.

 

[photomatt]

Uber has raised the "Safe Rides Fee". The old fee was $1. The new fee is $1.85. Uber has made this change in some other cities, although the amount of the increase is not the same.

This money goes straight to Uber. The driver never sees any of it. The Safe Rides Fee is allegedly money Uber uses for background checks and infrastructure improvements.

If you are trying to determine how much it will cost to get from Point A to Point B, please remember to make the change in the formula.

Formula to determine Uber ride cost : $1.85 (Safe Rides Fee) + $1 (Base Fare) + (Number of Miles * .75) + (Number of Minutes * .13)

It's still cheaper than a taxi, even with the increase.

 

[NonnaT]

I am a current part-time Uber driver in Orlando.

The Uber app will not allow you to request an Uber on MCO property. What people do to get picked up at the airport is to take a free shuttle to one of the nearby hotels. Once they are at the hotel they will request an Uber. This is perfectly OK. Some people will drop the pin somewhere outside of MCO property and then call the driver and explain that they want to be picked up at the airport. I personally won't pick up someone at the airport if they do this, but others will. I have no problem picking up someone at one of the nearby hotels.

Uber can pick up and drop off anywhere on Disney property. At first, some of the parking booth attendants would ask Uber drivers to pay, but they have stopped that (or at least it happens less frequently). I have an annual pass so I just show that if I need to get through. I have never had any issues. At the MK, pickup and drop-off is easy because there is dedicated 15 minute parking. At the other parks it is a little more tricky, so you need to call your driver to confirm the pickup location.

Taxi rates are $2.40 a mile. Uber's non-surge rates are 75 cents a mile plus 13 cents a minute. An Uber vehicle is almost always cleaner and you will never get taken a longer route than necessary. The downside is that you might have to wait a few minutes for an Uber to show up, whereas taxis are usually waiting for you everywhere on Disney property.

You would think more people would use Uber, but they don't. It's so much easier than taking the buses, and it's not expensive. For example, if you wanted to go from the MK to the Animal Kingdom Lodge you would pay about $20 in a taxi. That same ride would cost about $8 in an Uber, if there was no surge. Even if there was a surge, it has to get to 3.2 in order to get to the same rate as a taxi.

If you do take an Uber, remember that the tip is NOT included. It's not the driver's fault that Uber has not included a tip button. If you can tip the bellman to put a suitcase in your trunk, it is OK to tip the driver who takes your suitcase out of the trunk and drove you safely to your destination. I realize that some readers might find this controversial, but if you can tip a taxi driver why won't you tip an Uber driver? Again, the service is usually superior and the vehicle is much nicer and cleaner. If more people would tip, there would be more drivers, and riders would not have to wait as long when they request a ride.

Also, any rating less than 5 stars means you want your driver fired. No, it doesn't make any sense, but Uber will deactivate drivers with less than a 4.6 rating. So, anything less than 5 stars is unacceptable, according to Uber.

If you have any more questions, please feel free to ask.

THANK YOU for the most accurate, up-to-date information! Much appreciated!

 

[R W B]

Here in New Orleans Uber can not pick up from our airport (MSY) but we can drop off.

I am a current part-time Uber driver in Orlando.

The Uber app will not allow you to request an Uber on MCO property. What people do to get picked up at the airport is to take a free shuttle to one of the nearby hotels. Once they are at the hotel they will request an Uber. This is perfectly OK. Some people will drop the pin somewhere outside of MCO property and then call the driver and explain that they want to be picked up at the airport. I personally won't pick up someone at the airport if they do this, but others will. I have no problem picking up someone at one of the nearby hotels.

Uber can pick up and drop off anywhere on Disney property. At first, some of the parking booth attendants would ask Uber drivers to pay, but they have stopped that (or at least it happens less frequently). I have an annual pass so I just show that if I need to get through. I have never had any issues. At the MK, pickup and drop-off is easy because there is dedicated 15 minute parking. At the other parks it is a little more tricky, so you need to call your driver to confirm the pickup location.

Taxi rates are $2.40 a mile. Uber's non-surge rates are 75 cents a mile plus 13 cents a minute. An Uber vehicle is almost always cleaner and you will never get taken a longer route than necessary. The downside is that you might have to wait a few minutes for an Uber to show up, whereas taxis are usually waiting for you everywhere on Disney property.

You would think more people would use Uber, but they don't. It's so much easier than taking the buses, and it's not expensive. For example, if you wanted to go from the MK to the Animal Kingdom Lodge you would pay about $20 in a taxi. That same ride would cost about $8 in an Uber, if there was no surge. Even if there was a surge, it has to get to 3.2 in order to get to the same rate as a taxi.

If you do take an Uber, remember that the tip is NOT included. It's not the driver's fault that Uber has not included a tip button. If you can tip the bellman to put a suitcase in your trunk, it is OK to tip the driver who takes your suitcase out of the trunk and drove you safely to your destination. I realize that some readers might find this controversial, but if you can tip a taxi driver why won't you tip an Uber driver? Again, the service is usually superior and the vehicle is much nicer and cleaner. If more people would tip, there would be more drivers, and riders would not have to wait as long when they request a ride.

Also, any rating less than 5 stars means you want your driver fired. No, it doesn't make any sense, but Uber will deactivate drivers with less than a 4.6 rating. So, anything less than 5 stars is unacceptable, according to Uber.

If you have any more questions, please feel free to ask.

Pretty interesting POV here.

I am an Uber driver here in New Orleans and we get better rates then you listed, i'm honestly surprised by this.

Also, I 100% disagree with you about the tips. Its stated that the riders are not suppose to tip cash. Ive read paper work from Uber saying thats part of the safety reasons too, so the drivers don't have cash on them. Having so much cash is a big reason why Taxi drivers get robbed. I know with Lyft their is a tip option that you can do via your credit card, id be fine with that but I personally don't expect a cash tip ever. Now I'm not saying I turn it down when offered but I'd never expect it nor would ever tell people they should tip their Uber drivers.

 

[ford91exploder]

Uber is kicking the cab companies behind because of the information uber gives the rider ie good data on availability and an ACCURATE ETA not like a cab where the driver shows up somewhere in a 1 hour window. I'd use Uber if it cost MORE than a cab because the scheduling information gives me more control over my time

If the cab companies were SMART they would license use of the Uber/Lyft apps but instead they want to cling to an outdated business model where the cabby rather than the rider is in control of the schedule.

 

[ABQ]

I'm entirely clueless regarding the use of uber as out here in the wild, wild west, they only service a very, very small area and it's limited to so called UberX and UberLX, both of which I believe are the cheapest of all Uber services and, I assume, those which may or may not partake in the Oct 16th strike. I was completely confused after mentioning what I read here to a friend from Orange County, California as his only experience was with Uber Black where he said "What the heck are you talking about, Uber costs more than a taxi"
Uber is banking on the fact that no two rides seem to cost the same. We have at least two uber driver's on this thread, the local Orlando one who appears to make far less per ride than the other, I think, from Louisiana, I'd like to know, which Uber category do their rides fall into? X? LX? YYZ? I know someone asked the cost of a ride between WDW and Uni and got an estimate, but doesn't that vary greatly based on the service type?

 

[R W B]

I'm entirely clueless regarding the use of uber as out here in the wild, wild west, they only service a very, very small area and it's limited to so called UberX and UberLX, both of which I believe are the cheapest of all Uber services and, I assume, those which may or may not partake in the Oct 16th strike. I was completely confused after mentioning what I read here to a friend from Orange County, California as his only experience was with Uber Black where he said "What the heck are you talking about, Uber costs more than a taxi"
Uber is banking on the fact that no two rides seem to cost the same. We have at least two uber driver's on this thread, the local Orlando one who appears to make far less per ride than the other, I think, from Louisiana, I'd like to know, which Uber category do their rides fall into? X? LX? YYZ? I know someone asked the cost of a ride between WDW and Uni and got an estimate, but doesn't that vary greatly based on the service type?

Hey, yes I am a driver here in New Orleans, Louisiana. I only drive about 10hrs a week and avg $25-$30/hr. Gotta factor in gas and taxes in that though. Now I do get really good mpg in my Honda Pilot so I really don't have a high cost factor.

Quick run down of how Uber works,

UberX is your basic level, anyone that passes a background check and has an eligible vehicle can do this. It's for 1-4 passengers. Pretty much any sedan can be used for this.

UberXL (Xtra Large) is the same as above but for up to 7-8 passengers, I forgot exactly. My Pilot qualifies for this service. When UberXL is used it does cost more then UberX, it has a higher base rate, higher mile cost and higher minute cost. Keep in mind those higher fees are only for XL rides. I still do mainly UberX rides which pays the same no matter what vehicle you have.

New Orleans regulations require any UberX or XL vehicle can not be older then 8 model years. So as of right now your vehicle must be a 2008+, that obviously will go up to 2009 on Jan 1st 2016. I know this changes city by city. For instance Uber is going to court right now in the parish (county) next to New Orleans and if approved that parish will only need a 2005+ vehicle to pick up in.

Uber Black, this is the signature service that is the most expensive. It's basically a chauffeur. Now I do not know how this works any place else but here in New Orleans in order to qualify to drive for Uber Black your vehicle can't be more then 2 yrs old, must have leather interior, must be black and you must have a Class D (Chauffuer) license.

As far as the actual ride costs are concerned, it would be hard to get the exact same rate twice. When a rider "pings" for an Uber he has already put in his address and when my phone goes off and I accept his request Uber has a map from my cell phones GPS coordinates to where they are and it gives me the suggested route to go pick them up. Once I pick up the rider then their destination is reveled and once again I have a map with a suggested route to get to the destination. Uber tracks my cell phones GPS signal the entire time the rider is in my vehicle and that's how I get paid. I don't have to take the path Uber lays out for me, if theirs traffic or something else I can detour, I get paid for the actual route I take, not the suggested one. So with that said a trip from WDW to UNI would vary depending on where at on Disney property you were picked up from. Here in New Orleans the only Flat fee destination we have is the airport, no matter where at in the city you're picked up from it will cost you $34 for UberX to the airport.

If you have any other questions, ask away.

 

[ford91exploder]

Hey, yes I am a driver here in New Orleans, Louisiana. I only drive about 10hrs a week and avg $25-$30/hr. Gotta factor in gas and taxes in that though. Now I do get really good mpg in my Honda Pilot so I really don't have a high cost factor.

Quick run down of how Uber works,

UberX is your basic level, anyone that passes a background check and has an eligible vehicle can do this. It's for 1-4 passengers. Pretty much any sedan can be used for this.

UberXL (Xtra Large) is the same as above but for up to 7-8 passengers, I forgot exactly. My Pilot qualifies for this service. When UberXL is used it does cost more then UberX, it has a higher base rate, higher mile cost and higher minute cost. Keep in mind those higher fees are only for XL rides. I still do mainly UberX rides which pays the same no matter what vehicle you have.

New Orleans regulations require any UberX or XL vehicle can not be older then 8 model years. So as of right now your vehicle must be a 2008+, that obviously will go up to 2009 on Jan 1st 2016. I know this changes city by city. For instance Uber is going to court right now in the parish (county) next to New Orleans and if approved that parish will only need a 2005+ vehicle to pick up in.

Uber Black, this is the signature service that is the most expensive. It's basically a chauffeur. Now I do not know how this works any place else but here in New Orleans in order to qualify to drive for Uber Black your vehicle can't be more then 2 yrs old, must have leather interior, must be black and you must have a Class D (Chauffuer) license.

As far as the actual ride costs are concerned, it would be hard to get the exact same rate twice. When a rider "pings" for an Uber he has already put in his address and when my phone goes off and I accept his request Uber has a map from my cell phones GPS coordinates to where they are and it gives me the suggested route to go pick them up. Once I pick up the rider then their destination is reveled and once again I have a map with a suggested route to get to the destination. Uber tracks my cell phones GPS signal the entire time the rider is in my vehicle and that's how I get paid. I don't have to take the path Uber lays out for me, if theirs traffic or something else I can detour, I get paid for the actual route I take, not the suggested one. So with that said a trip from WDW to UNI would vary depending on where at on Disney property you were picked up from. Here in New Orleans the only Flat fee destination we have is the airport, no matter where at in the city you're picked up from it will cost you $34 for UberX to the airport.

If you have any other questions, ask away.

It seems that NOLA has reasonable regulations for Uber, As to taxi's being 'Safer' than Uber cars.

In NYC much of the taxi fleet are Ford Escape Hybrid's I own one as well so I know the car. Last cab ride in NYC every warning indicator was lit on the dash except for the 'Red Triangle of Death' (FEH owners will know what I mean but when that comes on the car shuts down) That cab was manifestly unsafe yet it was still on the road. I did drop a dime on the taxi but probably nothing happened.

And people wonder why many prefer Uber, It's not a mystery at least to me.

 

[righttrack]

Uber is a concept whose time has come. The only issue for our WDW trips is that we are always four people, with bags, so calling a car, versus picking a minivan out of a lineup is more difficult. I'm assuming there are Uber SUVs present in Orlando, if that's the case, then I guess we'll give that a try next time.