The uber taxi app

mose_2

It would be pointless for taxi drivers to deliberately sit in traffic it really doesn't pay for them to do that. They want the wheels turning not sat still. As for the tests check YouTube they are all carried out by independent bodies. If TFL or the met police published the amount of serious sexual assaults carried out by minicabs you would be shocked. Just go down to swallow street after midnight and take a look at amount of illegal touting going on, I certainly wouldn't want my wife or daughter getting in one. As for uber do you really want their policy on surge pricing being the norm?

dacouch

mose wrote: »

It would be pointless for taxi drivers to deliberately sit in traffic it really doesn't pay for them to do that. They want the wheels turning not sat still. As for the tests check YouTube they are all carried out by independent bodies. If TFL or the met police published the amount of serious sexual assaults carried out by minicabs you would be shocked. Just go down to swallow street after midnight and take a look at amount of illegal touting going on, I certainly wouldn't want my wife or daughter getting in one. As for uber do you really want their policy on surge pricing being the norm?

Taxi drivers frequently drive around touting for fares and then suddenly stopping without any form of indication to park diagonally so they can pick up a fare but leave both lanes blocked to other traffic.

As opposed by black cabs occassional non surge pricing eg taking the long route when they're quiet or the customers a tourist.

There's no safety guarantee in a black cab either although granted they're a lot safer than mini cabs or especially illegal mini cabs unless of course you had got into John Worboys black cab

mose_2

I wondered how long it would take for john warboys name to crop up. 1 out of 25000.

gingerdad

i think uber and the likes are the future, hopefully keeps a bit of competition in the market.

BillJones

mose wrote: »

It would be pointless for taxi drivers to deliberately sit in traffic it really doesn't pay for them to do that.

It pays more than if they are sat at a taxi rank for an hour, and in many cases, once they drop off, that's exactly what will happen next.

It's a far from rare occurrence, when a black cab driver hears an out of town accent, that they'll simply take the wrong route. I'll not take black cans from King's Cross for that very reason; my accent plus departure point between then almost guarantee an argument when I point out that I know that they are taking the wrong route.

w211

dacouch wrote: »

I for one can't wait for this so I don't have to put up with them suddenly braking to do a u turn without any warning or deciding to pick up a customer in the middle of traffic lights without any thought for the rest of the road users

dacouch wrote: »

Taxi drivers frequently drive around touting for fares and then suddenly stopping without any form of indication to park diagonally so they can pick up a fare but leave both lanes blocked to other traffic.

I don't think taxis "suddenly" stop, or "without warning" to collect a passenger! They do so to collect a passenger! When driving in London it just takes a little anticipation to see what a taxi would actually do. When I follow one, I make a note if they're empty or not, and if they are, I scan the road ahead of them to look for passengers hailing that cab, so I can anticipate what the taxi will do.

mose wrote: »

As for uber do you really want their policy on surge pricing being the norm?

Uber's surge pricing is only temporary, unless there's something ongoing that will cause it to surge for a period of time (i.e. a tube strike, inclement weather, a demo).

During the surge, bookings by passengers will ease off a little (those who really want a car, will either pay the surge, or look for an alternative), and drivers from surrounding areas will drive into the surge area (or those in the surge area looking to go home are encouraged to stay out longer), and the pricing will go back to normal fairly soon.

Remember, black taxis have their own form of "surge" pricing in the form of Tariffs 2 and 3, which always come into place after 8pm every weeknight and all day weekends, regardless of the supply and demand.

BillJones

w211 wrote: »

I don't think taxis "suddenly" stop, or "without warning" to collect a passenger! They do so to collect a passenger! When driving in London it just takes a little anticipation to see what a taxi would actually do.

Oh, they definitely do, which can include an unsignalled U-turn across traffic.

It's conceivable that they've spotted someone raise their hand behind me, in their wing mirror, and you are referring to that as a "warning", but from the point of view of a cyclist heading East, for example, a pedestrian behind you on the westbound side of the road raising their hand cannot be considered a warning at all.

w211

BillJones wrote: »

point of view of a cyclist

That's a fair point if you're a cyclist!

[simon]

dacouch wrote: »

Taxi drivers frequently drive around touting for fares and then suddenly stopping without any form of indication to park diagonally so they can pick up a fare but leave both lanes blocked to other traffic.

The same thing will happen with the uber taxi drivers, The uber taxi drivers get a job closest to them from a person who has requested a taxi via the app, the taxi driver will still be blocking the roads / making u-turns and stopping in awkward places to pick people up.

DKLS

mose wrote: »

In numerous tests of londons taxi drivers vrs minicab drivers with a tomtom the taxi driver always wins without fail. No satnav will ever be as good as someone that has studied thousands of hours and 3-5 years of londons street and buildings. There's a saying in London if you are in trouble and can't find a policeman find a cabbie!

Any links to these tests where black cab drivers always win?

The "knowledge" will be killed off by technology its inevitable.