Uber

stonebob wrote: »

Just back from London where I used Airbnb and Uber with great success......Uber was half the price of a taxi and there seemed to be one around every corner ..everyone loves them ..I know there's an argument about regulation of drivers but there's a lot of dodgy taxi drivers too just read the papers ...the drivers were polite ..spotless cars..and they don't tap on..

There's a thread on here basically people want protectionism for taxis from competition.

I completely disagree and far prefer Uber. Use it all the time when travelling. The convenience of paying by card is also great.

GerardKeating

usernamegoes wrote: »

There's a thread on here basically people want protectionism for taxis from competition.

I completely disagree and far prefer Uber. Use it all the time when travelling.

If Uber want to compete with Taxi, it has to be fair, do Uber drivers have the same level of public liability insurance as Taxi's

usernamegoes wrote: »

The convenience of paying by card is also great.

Not paid cash for a taxi in a few years, many/most take cards now.

usernamegoes wrote: »

There's a thread on here basically people want protectionism for taxis from competition.

no, just a level playing field in terms of licensing, insurance and oversight.

Stephen15

The one thing I will give the UK credit for is the fact that the licensed taxis (not minicabs) there perform an excellent professional service with decent cars which are all wheelchair accessible and professional drivers that know where they're going.

A London taxi driver has to do 4 years of training to learn all the streets around the city so I can understand why they would be pissed with Uber drivers rocking up without any training or proper vetting.

end of the road

usernamegoes wrote: »

basically people want protectionism for taxis from competition.

no, no we don't. taxis already have competition in the form of other taxis. uber is a taxi service and is able to be subject to the same regulations, and should have those regulations imposed on it as it's a taxi service.

Dravokivich

People have been assaulted in fake taxis in this country to such a degree that about 10 / 12 years ago there was a big campaign to get people to check what they are getting into. NTA released an app within the last 3 years that people can check the Taxi Licence No. on the board against the driver in the car.

Was this hysteria?

Stephen15 wrote: »

A London taxi driver has to do 4 years of training to learn all the streets around the city so I can understand why they would be pissed with Uber drivers rocking up without any training or proper vetting.

In the past that mattered but not any more with phone, mapping, traffic monitoring and GPS technology

Stephen15

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

In the past that mattered but not any more with phone, mapping, traffic monitoring and GPS technology

But there were actual physical maps back in the day. A taxi driver is a professional driver and a professional driver should know where they are going without relying on GPS it would be like a plumber looking up how to fix a sink.

Losty Dublin

Stephen15 wrote: »

But there were actual physical maps back in the day. A taxi driver is a professional driver and a professional driver should know where they are going without relying on GPS it would be like a plumber looking up how to fix a sink.

Even today, most London cabbies won't use GPS as it's no better than their own know how.

shanec1928

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

In the past that mattered but not any more with phone, mapping, traffic monitoring and GPS technology

Their was a show on ch4 around September time I think which was all about passing the exams to become a London cabbie. Looked crazy with people taking 4+ years to pass.

nilescraneo

Yes, Dublin needs MORE cars on the roads. That will solve our traffic and shoddy public transport problems!

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

no, just a level playing field in terms of licensing, insurance and oversight.

You mean exactly what all Uber drivers in London have, what with them all being fully licensed and insured hackneys.

Stephen15 wrote: »

But there were actual physical maps back in the day. A taxi driver is a professional driver and a professional driver should know where they are going without relying on GPS it would be like a plumber looking up how to fix a sink.

What is great about London is that you, the passenger have a choice:

You can select a hackney, which might have to use GPS, but is cheaper or a more expensive Taxi with a driver with "The Knowledge".

Choice is a good thing for consumers.

Uber in London is very different to the US. It is just hackneys ordered by app, like we use to have here pre-deregulation.

Even the US version of Uber is little different then the old hackney model we had here pre-deregulation, just with an app.

Stephen15 wrote: »

But there were actual physical maps back in the day. A taxi driver is a professional driver and a professional driver should know where they are going without relying on GPS it would be like a plumber looking up how to fix a sink.

we're those physical maps able to calculate routes for you in fraction of a second, were they able to access live traffic updates and road closures, were they able to auto update themselves with changing road layouts, we're they able to instantly tell you where you are already?

Plumbers look at instruction manuals when installing items, they don't just fire them into the benchtop willy nilly. Exactly the same way car mechanics now can access factory specs and diagrams on a laptop which is plugged into the vehicle reporting the errors rather than pulling apart the car trying to guess the problem these days

Dravokivich

hmm I don't have much invested in the discussion of Uber over Taxis, but local knowledge is a must. GPS should only be used as a suggestion. Both my Garmin GPS fully uptodate and Google maps on my phone prefer to send me to junctions i can't use, or the wrong way down roads around Fairview. I've seen people who followed pathways i was previously suggested by Google, who didn't seem to take the road signage into account.

So i wouldn't be eager to see GPS as a positive. Especially when i regularly see taxi drivers here have GPS devices or Apps present.

GerardKeating wrote: »

If Uber want to compete with Taxi, it has to be fair, do Uber drivers have the same level of public liability insurance as Taxi's

Not paid cash for a taxi in a few years, many/most take cards now.

Yes they have full public liability insurance, and I'd have no problem with a law saying all Uber-style operators must have insurance for their trips.

I take taxis almost daily, this is not my experience at all! Even if you do find one they will complain and moan if you ask to pay by card. Also what comfort do I have if I hail a cab on the street that it will have a card machine?

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

no, just a level playing field in terms of licensing, insurance and oversight.

So you'd be fine with an Uber London-style arrangement? Uber in london are licensed, insured, and under supervision.

end of the road wrote: »

no, no we don't. taxis already have competition in the form of other taxis. uber is a taxi service and is able to be subject to the same regulations, and should have those regulations imposed on it as it's a taxi service.

Yeah, that's not competition and if you don't know that there's little hope left.

end of the road

usernamegoes wrote: »

Yes they have full public liability insurance, and I'd have no problem with a law saying all Uber-style operators must have insurance for their trips.

I take taxis almost daily, this is not my experience at all! Even if you do find one they will complain and moan if you ask to pay by card. Also what comfort do I have if I hail a cab on the street that it will have a card machine?

So you'd be fine with an Uber London-style arrangement? Uber in london are licensed, insured, and under supervision.

Yeah, that's not competition and if you don't know that there's little hope left.

yes, it is competition. taxis compete with other taxis, ubber is a taxi service, ergo competition

MJohnston

What do people think is unfair or unsuitable about current Irish taxi regulation that they want Uber to bypass it?

Losty Dublin

usernamegoes wrote: »

Yes they have full public liability insurance, and I'd have no problem with a law saying all Uber-style operators must have insurance for their trips.

But they are not insured to carry fare paying passengers. No insurance company operating in the Irish market will issue a PSV policy on a car or to a driver that has not got a PSV. There is no way around this no matter what way Uber will try to word it.

usernamegoes wrote: »

So you'd be fine with an Uber London-style arrangement? Uber in london are licensed, insured, and under supervision.

yes, as long as the income earned is also being recorded and taxed correctly.

Losty Dublin wrote: »

But they are not insured to carry fare paying passengers. No insurance company operating in the Irish market will issue a PSV policy on a car or to a driver that has not got a PSV. There is no way around this no matter what way Uber will try to word it.

Uber insure the trips. You are spreading a myth. Even if they didn't I'd have no problem with a law requiring them to insure the trip.

listermint

Ah Uber the great race to the bottom for wages, Uber they company that wants to drive everyone else out of the business and then hike prices once it had the monopoly.

This is the future folks I'm sure everyone wants an Uberesque company moving into their job sector forcing form wages and pushing automation.

Superb

usernamegoes wrote: »

Uber insure the trips. You are spreading a myth. Even if they didn't I'd have no problem with a law requiring them to insure the trip.

so how are you covered for the rest of the time?, not working etc because your insurance policy won't cover you full stop if you are at any point using the vehicle for reward...

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

so how are you covered for the rest of the time?, not working etc because your insurance policy won't cover you full stop if you are at any point using the vehicle for reward...

Well then they're breaking the law. No one is arguing for no insurance. Have a law which requires proper insurance. I don't see the problem

Amirani

MJohnston wrote: »

What do people think is unfair or unsuitable about current Irish taxi regulation that they want Uber to bypass it?

I think it's pretty poor that taxis here haven't been mandated to accept electronic payment yet as they have been in London.

howiya

Amirani wrote: »

I think it's pretty poor that taxis here haven't been mandated to accept electronic payment yet as they have been in London.

It's an even poorer reflection on taxi drivers that they would have to be mandated to accept electronic payments.

Self employed business people turning away customers because they can't facilitate their method of payment..

You can get a sum up card reader for €39 and taxi drivers are even allowed pass on the transaction fee up to a maximum of 5% of the fare.

That being said there are plenty of options to ensure you get a taxi that can accept card payments with all the apps these days. I use mytaxi coming home from work every night for that very reason.

MJohnston wrote: »

What do people think is unfair or unsuitable about current Irish taxi regulation that they want Uber to bypass it?

The 6,300 euro fee for the 'privilege' of operating a taxi?

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

so how are you covered for the rest of the time?, not working etc because your insurance policy won't cover you full stop if you are at any point using the vehicle for reward...

This was dealt with already in another thread which you ignored. Uber in the UK insure the vehicle and passengers. The same in Australia. In fact it appears to be the case generally. In the US, it is different but there are specific insurance policies available which one can purchase to add ride-sharing capabilities to your own personal policy as just one example.

listermint wrote: »

Ah Uber the great race to the bottom for wages, Uber they company that wants to drive everyone else out of the business and then hike prices once it had the monopoly.

This is the future folks I'm sure everyone wants an Uberesque company moving into their job sector forcing form wages and pushing automation.

Superb

Even though companies like Lyft who are doing better in the US than Uber would just come in and keep prices down? Yes, scaremongering is strong in this one.

Peer to peer economy is here to stay, good luck putting that genie back in the bottle. Maybe we should go back to basket weaving?