Uber Alles

I've been in an Uber twice in the Twin Cities, both times when I was with a couple of other people on the way somewhere and it was a group choice ("choice"). Both trips took us up or down Snelling Avenue and both times the driver was speeding pretty egregiously.

I've been in a more than a few cabs in the Twin Cities over the years as well, and maybe I wasn't as aware of speeding at the time as I am now, but I don't think those drivers were speeding as much or at all, probably because they're on a meter and they don't have to in order to be compensated.

I was reminded of this because of a Tweet thread I saw a couple of days ago. Think about this the next time you consider hiring an Uber:

...an Uber driver last night told me a story which made my jaw hit the floor.

He picked me up, and apologised for the congestion. "You see all these cars, though? They're owned by the same person". (1/9)

Me: "What do you mean? Aren't they all ubers and lyfts?"

Him: "Yeah, but the drivers lease the cars off the same guy. I met him. He's from Virginia, and leases out thousands of cars to drivers who for financial or background reasons can't otherwise buy or rent a car that meets, say, Uber's rules."

Me: "Oh, ok. Well, that makes sense."

Him: "Yeah? Here's the thing, though. The set-up means that when these drivers complete a ride, the payment goes direct to the guy who owns the car. The driver sees precisely zero cents until they hit a monthly quota. The money's in the owner's account; he then transfers it once the quota's hit. That's why you see these drivers speeding around, cutting corners. They need to rack up these trips or they're not even paying off their lease, let alone making money".

Me: "What?! But I thought the margins for uber drivers is low anyway. How is this worth it for them?"

Him: "Oh. Well being an uber driver isn't their main job. They might work a 9-5, but not own a car that lets them get to that job. By leasing this uber car, it gives them transportation, right? So they wake up, complete a few rides before work, a few after. More on the weekend, obviously. If they're quick, they can complete enough rides to make their quota for the month and make some money.

But they're on a real knife-edge... If they don't go quick and do enough rides, they fall behind on those lease payments and lose access to the car that gets them to their main job which actually pays their rent and food and essentials, right?

But if they go too quick, and get a speeding ticket or their driving makes their Uber customer rating drop below 4.5, then they lose access to the car too. It's a real bind. You can see them everywhere, though. Look, there's another two."

Me, still in the back: GIF of stupefied face

And I would say: We don't even need this extra layer of thumbscrews on the drivers to make them into wielders of death machines on the roads. Just the basic equation of time = money at a set price vs. a meter is doing that already.