UBER, LYFT BRING RIDE-SHARING ERA TO CITY
Modern-day versions of jitneys are tailored to ease of use, writes Dale Edward Johnson.
After years of discussion, ride-sharing services, such as Uber and Lyft, are about to come to Regina.
It means we’ll be able to get rides in private passenger vehicles. Ride-sharing services use an app on a smartphone to connect people looking for rides with cars and drivers in the area. The drivers use their personal vehicles to provide rides. No cash or credit cards are used, because the fare is automatically paid through an app that is set up before the first ride. These features now are also available through apps with conventional taxi companies.
By the way, this idea of getting rides from individuals is more than 100 years old. Back in the Model T era, car owners found by giving rides to strangers in their personal vehicles (called “jitneys”) they could earn some extra money. And people looking for rides were glad to have another way to get around, other than crowded streetcars and buses.
On May 10, 1915, the Leader newspaper reported “Like all up-to-date cities Regina boasts of a jitney service with some half dozen or more cars in operation,” and wondered whether jitneys “will become a permanent feature.”
Well, they weren’t permanent — but modern-day versions of jitneys are coming to Regina, and have already arrived in most other major Canadian cities.
I have travelled by Uber when I have visited other cities. Most of the Uber drivers I have chatted with are part-timers. I’ve talked to Uber drivers who have fulltime jobs as financial planners, cable TV installers and computer forensic investigators. With Uber, they can drive as many or as few hours as they want, rather than signing up for a specific shift with a required number of hours.
Also, the cars look different. Taxis have signs on top and labels on the sides, while Ubers are unmarked cars. I’ve ridden in a variety of mid-sized, mid-priced sedans, including Hyundai Sonatas, Nissan Altimas and Toyota Camrys.
By setting up an account with Uber, the firm has your personal details, including phone number and credit card number. On the app, it simply asks where you want to go, and the app determines where you are, and that’s where you get picked up.
The request goes out to Uber drivers in the area and the first to respond gets the fare. Uber drivers tell me when they accept a fare, they don’t know where the destination is. That’s so drivers don’t consider a fare too small to bother.
There are some similarities between Ubers and taxis: some drivers like to talk a lot and some don’t like to talk at all, and both Uber drivers and taxi drivers may occasionally get lost.
When I visit Toronto, I have an Uber pick me up at Pearson International Airport for a 20-kilometre ride southwest to Mississauga. I’ve made this trip several times. It’s about a 20-minute ride along the 401 and 403 highways. When I take taxis, the flat-rate fee is $50. When I use Uber, the fare is $30 to $35.
The last time I made the trip and got in an Uber at the airport, after about five minutes I noticed we were in some unfamiliar territory. We were heading north, yet I knew we should be going south.
I asked the driver what route he was taking — and reminded him of my destination address.
“The GPS isn’t working,” he explained.
Then he tried to get turned around, and next thing I knew we were heading in the opposite direction on the 401 — east instead of west — and stuck in a traffic jam, creeping along at about 15 km/h.
“This is taking a long time,” I observed.
“Can’t do anything about the traffic. The GPS isn’t working,” he said.
After another five minutes or so, I suggested that I shouldn’t be charged extra just because his GPS wasn’t working. He agreed, and told me there would be a discount.
We finally arrived at my destination, half an hour after I was picked up; the trip took about one-third more time than usual.
With Uber, a receipt is emailed to you as soon as the ride ends.
As I’m used to paying $30 to $35 for this trip, I was surprised when I opened the email to find out the bill for this ride came to $50.88. The receipt also noted that the trip was 37 kms and lasted 28 minutes, making the average speed about 80 km/h.
About 14 hours later, I got another email telling me Uber had refunded me $21.89 bringing the new total down to $28.89, which is lower than the usual price. So mistakes can happen — and mistakes can be corrected.
On my return trip a few days later, it was snowing heavily and police were warning people not to drive if they didn’t have to. Well, I had to get to the airport. I wondered if there would be fewer Ubers and more demand in this poor weather.
When I went on the app to order an Uber, it said there were eight in the vicinity, and one arrived just two minutes later, which is the quickest pickup I have ever had. Usually I wait 10 to 20 minutes.
“Some guys don’t like to drive in this kind of weather, so they stay home,” the driver said. “But I find business is very good in bad weather, and it doesn’t bother me, so I thought I would drive today.”
The trip was uneventful, other than the weather. Due to the snow, slush and traffic, we went about 45 km/h along the 403 and 401. The trip lasted 28 minutes — identical in duration to the first trip — but the distance was about half, only 20 km instead of 37 km. The bill came to $33.37.
So, get ready for Uber, Lyft and perhaps other ride-sharing services in Regina. Just like taxis, occasionally drivers can get lost.