| As a user f Uber since very early on, I half agree, half disagree. Uber is awesome -- ut the costing model fucking sucks. When in SF I lived in Presidio and Upper Market/Noe Valley area... Getting the SF cabs to come to my house was so infuriating; nobody wanted to come pick me up in Presidio or Noe Valley. I was actually banned from multiple cab companies, as - it turns out - they share caller data: I was calling multiple cab companies to my house (Because nobody would show) as a shotgun approach to getting a cab. A dispatcher told me I was blacklisted due to this practice; my response was that if the cab had shown up, I wouldnt do this... They didnt care. (I had MANY calls where I called 20+ times and waited 2 hours.) FUC THE SF CABS. PERIOD. HOWEVER; I think that Uber (and ALL cabs) are way over priced. The fact that I had to pay $75 to take me from SF to SFO - where I was FLYING to LAX from SFO for $99 - I found this ridiculous! The fact is that all CAB fees are just not congruous with the service. When A cab ride from a home in SF to SFO costs ~$80, but takes ~30 minutes, you're paying the equiv $160K per year for the services of a DRIVER... This is not sustainable. |
The reason Uber black car costs $65 (not sure if they charge more from Presidio) is because it is still cheaper than taking a black car limo from an agency. Black car is a luxury good.
Uber is great for within the city and UberX is now cheaper than a cab in a lot of cases. $7 home for me vs $12 for a cab. It replaces cars for a lot of people and the demand they've had for it shows that it IS sustainable. It's an amazing alternative over cabs, price included.