Do You Catch UberX or Taxis?

Lnoshow on 21/09/2015 - 01:25
Last edited 21/09/2015 - 01:54

Disclaimer: I've driven both taxis and uberX in Sydney

UberX is cheaper than taxis, easy to use, and trackable on your smartphone as the car approaches - ooh what an age we live in.
As well as the cool factor to have some hipster pick you up in their late model Mazda 3 hatch, I think price is the main driver for the rapid rise in UberX.

Taxis are relatively expensive, but it's wrong to label the taxi industry as a monopoly because they have no control of the price as it is set by the state government.

Taxis have higher costs, the main ones being:

$32,050 p.a taxi plate lease
$7,620 p.a network subscription (eg taxis combined services, manly cabs, apple. silver service is over 8000 - dbz)
$6277.92 p.a CTP insurance
$4200 p.a taxi comprehensive insurance
$1800 p.a work cover insurance per driver

This is more than a $50,000 advantage that uberX has over taxis.
From my understanding, UberX is still an illegal service in all states in Australia but it's hard to enforce the law because uber simply bans the uber accounts on law enforcement agents.
In terms of safety, uberX and taxi drivers have criminal checks done, but taxi drivers are more stringently checked more regularly.

So what proportion of the ozbargain community catches uberX instead of taxis?

Poll Options

  • 20
    Always UberX - I will never go back to taxis
  • 15
    Sometimes UberX - During non-crazy surge periods
  • 2
    Rarely - I've only used it to take advantage of free ride promotions
  • 11
    Never - I'm not sure about UberX
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Comments

  • Charity on 21/09/2015 - 05:58
    +1

    Anyone who is anyone has a car.

    • inherentchoice on 21/09/2015 - 09:37
      -2

      So is Mother Theresa a no one?

      • PVA on 21/09/2015 - 10:09
        +1

        seeing she died nearly 20 years ago, I doubt she would have a car.

    • PVA on 21/09/2015 - 10:11

      its a pain using your own car when you are flying out an airport. Taxis work out great.

  • rambutann on 21/09/2015 - 07:16
    +4

    i believe that the way the taxi industry operates is extremely expensive and mega outdated. The cost of those overheads is insane and as a result I take uber whenever the need for a taxi arises. Not only is it cheaper, you generally get a nice guy driving you around that won't just sit on the phone the whole time muttering things under his breath in another language.

    I say to hell with the taxi industry with the way that they are going, they need to sort their shit out and make it much much cheaper for drivers to actually operate.

    It's simply business that uber are going to do better than taxis, banning uber is literally the same as forcing the every one to use a shitty government organisation and be treated to shitty service at a higher price.

  • PartyNextDoor on 21/09/2015 - 07:59
    +3

    Uber is great experience for the end user.

    I was hesitant at first because Uber isn't exactly the most ethical company but the way the taxi industry is reacting to the whole situation is childish. Yes Uber doesn't follow regulations but what are the taxi companies doing to better themselves in the meantime? Why not create an app to make it easy for customers to get a cab, improve customer service and I dunno - remove card transaction fees?

    Because honestly, if Uber does eventually get regulated and the costs go up, nobody is still going to catch a cab.

  • [Deactivated] on 21/09/2015 - 08:28
    +4

    Uber X unless my phone battery is flat.

    I'm sick of the shitty attitude from a lot of cabbies. Some are nice, but most of them are jerks.

    I live near the CBD and I got tired of getting into cabs only to be abused the whole way home because its a short trip and I'm wasting their time, etc. etc.
    One of the cabbies a month ago was so rude and abusive I really had to hold back from punching the douche in the face (and I'm a really chilled guy).

    • Randxyz123 on 21/09/2015 - 11:29
      +3

      This.

      I live 15 minutes from the Melbourne CBD.

      The other night 2 Taxis in a rank refused to take me because they wanted to go further. I said to the driver we eventually got to take us I was very close to ordering a uber.

      Since I was with my mate it was easier just to split a cab (yes I know you can do this with Uber but it was 2 am and we wanted to go home)

  • toniyellow on 21/09/2015 - 08:38
    +1

    Your poll is missing the option for 'neither', which seems possible in a bargain community.

    Personally - I'm never in a situation when I need a taxi. Own a car, use public transport if I'm drinking, or going somewhere without parking.
    For work - they only reimburse taxis, so I only catch taxis.

  • mskeggs on 21/09/2015 - 08:56
    +6

    Comments here seem to think the taxi drivers are some small business guy trying to screw over passengers. If you look at the costs provided in the original post, the largest by far is the plate hire. This is set at market rate, that is, it is based on what people are prepared to pay to have the right to drive a taxi. This system was originally set up to allow taxi drivers some protection to make sure there weren't millions of taxis and they followed safety rules etc.
    Unfortunately, prices for these have risen even faster than Sydney house prices, so current owners (usually investors who don't drive a taxi!) lobby very hard for the government to protect their investment.
    I have little sympathy for investors relying on government rules to distort competition, but I certainly want the taxi industry to:
    - pay worker's comp insurance for employees
    - pay award wages
    - insure itself appropriately
    - be suitably licensed

    Uber throws the baby out with bath water by cutting out the sensible regulation along with the anti-competitive regulation.
    I understand Uber has Uber (with licensed taxi/hire car drivers) and UberX (anyone off the street).
    It seems reasonable to me that the first model should be allowed as it promotes competition within a regulated framework, but the second should not UNLESS Uber takes on the role of maintaining regulation by, for example, taking out group insurance policies for casual drivers, making sure their casual drivers have suitable health & safety training etc.
    And I'd like them to pay tax too please.

    • Matt P on 24/09/2015 - 15:42
      +1

      I'm hopefully starting my first shift as an UberX driver tomorrow and i'd like to address a few points here.

      • You are correct in that the taxi plate costs are the big issue here and this is what the cabbies should be protesting. Because of this, taxi standards have dropped (i don't catch cabs often but when i do, i'd say 30% wouldnt pass a roadworthy due to stuffed suspension or tyres under the wear indicators.). Don't get me wrong, i feel for the cabbies that they have to resort to this sort of stuff because investors who aren't even in the industry are screwing them.

      • The taxi industry is also being held to ransom by companies like cabcharge and the booking agencies that take FAR too big of a cut and are not adapting to change.

      • Not "anyone off the street" can drive UberX. Any large infringements (excessive speeding, dui, loss of licence etc..) means you don't get on. I've had a police check done on me as well as providing my driving history. My vehicle also underwent a roadworthy inspection and in my state, must be less than 6 years old.

      • The chance of an uber driver paying tax is about the same as a taxi driver who is renting a cab paying tax. Neither one is any more "legitimate". For the record, i'll be keeping full records of expenses and income so i can correctly declare this.

      • I'd be keen to take a first aid course, heck i'd even pay for it out of my own pocket if it was required. Good suggestion. Are cab drivers required to do this?

      Most of the last few cabs i've been in were camry/prius hybrids that were at least 4-5 years old and all 300,000kms+. My car is a 2014 VW Golf with 20,000kms.

      I won't be relying on this to pay all my wages (although at the moment i dont have a job - the reason ive turned to this) but i'll probably work peak times i.e. fri/sat nite for a few hours to pay some extra on the mortgage. This will help with some tax deductibility for my car too and i can write off some depreciation etc.. on tax

      • mskeggs on 24/09/2015 - 18:13

        Good luck, I hope it works out well for you.
        The tax comment was about Uber not paying GST or company tax in Australia, not whether drivers pay it.
        I am pleased they do a road worthy on the vehicle and the driving record of the driver, that is good.
        To get a taxi driver authority in NSW you need to do a fair bit more:
        http://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/professional-drivers/taxi-dr…

        Including a (probably mickey mouse) course which gives a AQF cert 2.
        I am guessing this is more regulation than is strictly required, but it is also a fair bit more than Uber is requiring.
        As for the vehicle? Would Uber refuse a 5 yro Prius? Their web site says up to 9yro is ok.

        I recognise the product you are offering via Uber is better than the poorer taxis, but the poorest standard of Uber could be quite poor indeed. I am told lots of Uber drivers have nice cars, but surely there can't be that many owners of late model european hatchbacks willing to work for $30* an hour less expenses. (*only guaranteed during peak times)
        One thing you might look into is if you are insured for personal injury if you are driving. I note their blog post on their insurance specifically states they cover passengers, pedestrians and other drivers:
        http://newsroom.uber.com/sydney/2014/04/ridesharing-with-ube…
        It would be a disaster if you were injured and your insurance didn't cover it as you were operating a vehicle for hire.

        I'd be keen to hear how you get on after driving for a few weeks/months if you want to post a follow up. I'd be interested in things like real world fuel usage and other expenses against actual income to see what their rate of pay really is.

        • AssociatedOzJD @ Uber on 11/10/2015 - 16:27

          I have a 2011 Holden Caprice (V8) which is eligible for Uber Black… and I still get well above $30/hour most of the time when I drive for UberX (after costs). The guarantee is a minimum.

          One of the hardest things to price is car devaluation, but I only do it to make a few extra dollars when I'm bored.

          Fwiw: I'm a professional bus driver, and I hold both Bus Driver Authority and Hire Car Authority.

  • t_c on 21/09/2015 - 12:02

    I walk.

  • cloudy on 21/09/2015 - 12:27

    What is über x as opposed to normal uber vs über black?

    • [Deactivated] on 21/09/2015 - 12:54

      Uber X is the normal Uber, thats the proper name for it. Uber is the company, Uber X is the service level.

      • cloudy on 21/09/2015 - 15:01

        So ur saying there is only two choices of uber. Uber x and uber black?

        • [Deactivated] on 21/09/2015 - 16:14

          There is Uber Taxi which operates in Sydney, which dispatches a regular taxi for you via the Uber app.

          Uber Lux, and a whole bunch of other services. Not all are available in every city though.

  • kryptoz on 21/09/2015 - 21:17

    A recent, comparative study between Uber and Taxis —
    http://www.carsguide.com.au/car-news/taxi-vs-uber-the-melbou…
    It's not a substantial survey, but showed interesting results that beg more extensive research.

    Also, if you want to see how much you will save with UberX, checkout this site —
    http://www.taxiautofare.com/au/37/Melbourne-Cabs-fare-calcul…

  • ilikeradiohead on 22/09/2015 - 18:08

    but it's wrong to label the taxi industry as a monopoly because they have no control of the price as it is set by the state government.

    It is not wrong to label taxis a monopoly because they are one. Only people who own taxi licence plates can legally sell taxi services.
    And why should the government set taxi prices in the first place? All it does is make off peak services more expensive and high demand services artificially cheaper. I'm not saying that Uber's pricing model is ideal, but it better meets supply and demand than fixing prices in advance.

    • noshow on 23/09/2015 - 01:47

      The four key characteristics of monopoly are: (1) a single firm selling all output in a market, (2) a unique product, (3) restrictions on entry into and exit out of the industry, and more often than not (4) specialized information about production techniques unavailable to other potential producers.

      Lets test this on taxis:
      (1) No - Taxis provide transportation services. Other forms of transportation output are provided by buses, hire cars, trams, trains etc. This is closer to a yes on a Fri/Sat night between 12am-3am when buses and trains stop.
      (2) Yes -Taxis do provide a unique product through providing road transportation on call via street hails and bookings. However, this is a weak YES because it can be somewhat substituted(non-perfectly) by buses, trains, cycling, walking etc.
      (3) No - The main perceived barrier to entry is a taxi licence, but there is nothing stopping new competitors leasing or buying licences.
      (4) No - Taxis generally don't have access to information about where to transport passengers or own transportation techniques which are unavailable to potential competitors - Unless you make a booking and so that information given to the taxi driver is only known to that driver, and so he has specialised information on that particular booking.

      If you've ever driven taxis yourself, you will realise how competitive it is out there. As a single taxi on the road, you are competing with all the other taxis, and we fight for the prized left lane, spots outside hotels, rank positions etc. You may find taxis are pushy on the road weaving in and out of lanes. If taxis had a monopoly, why do we need to compete so fiercely on the road?
      To tag the taxi industry as a monopoly is implying that all the taxis in the country have been colluding against the public, and only picking up the highest bidder.

      Taxi cabs did NOT own a monopoly pre-UberX, and never will so long as fare rates are set by regulators.

      Uber on the otherhand one day might own a global monopoly of self driving uber cars and everyone will be paying whatever Uber wants you to pay.

      So yeah, it IS wrong to label taxis as a monopoly.

      • AssociatedOzJD @ Uber on 11/10/2015 - 16:32
        +1

        Heard of Cabcharge? That's a monopoly.

    • AssociatedOzJD @ Uber on 11/10/2015 - 16:33
      +1

      I'm also sick of hearing how the Taxi prices are set by government…. No, they're not. The government limits the price, but does not stop them from discounting.

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