PhilsFan
Blue Crack Addict
You are correct. There is more accountability if you have a bad experience with a cab driver than there is with an Uber driver because of the different regulatory measures they go through.
I love it, but I think getting shitty at women having issues with it is pretty poor.
What on earth are you babbling about.
Sent from my ass crack
i've never used uber or lyft, but i used a similar service this past summer in europe. the best thing i can recommend is what i did for finding drivers: pick someone with a decent amount of positive feedback. i assume uber and lyft have rating systems too, so i definitely suggest doing that. it'll help weed out the people who book rides and never show up, creepers, etc.
Just use common sense. Before accepting a Uber/Lyft booking, it outright tells you if your ride is going to be subject to surge pricing. If it says a surge of 2.5X or more is in effect, it could be more cost effective to take a normal cab (and request a flat rate, if you can). People aren't getting "overcharged" if they take a ride once having accepted the terms, which in their case involved them accepting the ride at the higher rate.
Also, before (or even while) you are in any paid ride situation, including a normal cab, dial up your favorite map app and chart out your destination, so you can be sure your driver is taking you on the most efficient route.
If you know you'll be in a strange city with no data, a little forethought might be in order: download a map app that allows offline use, and download the map for that city. I did this in Europe with great results, especially for just walking around.
Thanks! That's a lot of great advice
I didn't know the app told you beforehand if you'd be subject to surge pricing. It's not overcharging if it does, I agree.
The Uber app does for sure, I can't speak to Lyft as it no longer exists here.
Re surge pricing, also: if you're not in a terrible hurry to get where you're going, try waiting the surge out a bit. Surge pricing occurs when there's a shortage of drivers. The drivers in turn see what areas of their map are under surge conditions. What tends to happen is that drivers then flock to these areas, or drop off passengers, and demand corrects itself, with rates dropping back down sometimes in mere minutes. It can sometimes pay to be patient, if you have that luxury
you're welcome, edgar allan bro.Thanks for the tip. And I did read your earlier post about Carpooling, which is avaliable in the US now. I like the idea of having a flat rate, since I've read about instances of people getting seriously overcharged with Uber/Lyft.
I'll definitely try one of these ridesharing services when I go to LA, because taxis seem to be pretty expensive there.
i did something pretty similar when i was in europe (yeah yeah, i'm not one of those people who never shuts up about a trip, it's just because i was travelling alone in cities i'd never been to before). it was a bit more ridiculous than most people would do, but i printed up little maps to glue onto the backs of index cards. each card was for one day, detailing a schedule (roughly, just to get an idea of train/bus/subway numbers and times) of where to go that day from start to finish. it gave me a great idea of how far away i was from where i wanted to go next at any given moment, and at least then i could roughly figure out what a fare should cost to know i wouldn't be overcharged.If you know you'll be in a strange city with no data, a little forethought might be in order: download a map app that allows offline use, and download the map for that city. I did this in Europe with great results, especially for just walking around.
you're welcome, edgar allan bro.
i did something pretty similar when i was in europe (yeah yeah, i'm not one of those people who never shuts up about a trip, it's just because i was travelling alone in cities i'd never been to before). it was a bit more ridiculous than most people would do, but i printed up little maps to glue onto the backs of index cards. each card was for one day, detailing a schedule (roughly, just to get an idea of train/bus/subway numbers and times) of where to go that day from start to finish. it gave me a great idea of how far away i was from where i wanted to go next at any given moment, and at least then i could roughly figure out what a fare should cost to know i wouldn't be overcharged.
you're welcome, edgar allan bro.
I had a physical map and notes on my phone when I was in London last week. I had a great app for getting around, but sucks when you're tied to wi-fi, and you can't get on wi-fi half the time because you it kept telling me I could only register with a UK cell number.
Laaaaame. (At least I could get on at my hotel.)
the phone i'd had that i could make calls on was pretty old, so i was using my new phone for stuff like checking train times whenever i could connect to wifi. and alas, despite every place i stayed having wifi, it was spotty at best. definitely glad i had some hard copies of stuff for those moments when i had crap cell service or didn't want to mess with tethering my data.Cue cards? Printed hard copy maps? This sounds like a trip you took in the mid 1950s!!
(Sorry couldn't resist! )
Next time, grab CoPilot or NavFree, and download the map for the city before travelling (or at your hotel wifi). They use your phone's GPS function which isn't dependant on data