RIDEGURU
Jackson Bauer (jbauer)
Ride Apprentice from Boston, MA
Taxi Driver - Boston
398 DriverI've been a taxi driver for 20+ years now. Been in Boston the whole time. I'd like to think I have open mind and am not against signing up for Uber. Just haven't had the chance yet. Oh, I don't own a car, so how do I do that?
Activity
Posts by jbauer
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Here's the proof: Uber drivers are ripping off its customers [Who's Driving You?]
Check out this classic from Who's Driving You. Anti-Uber website. "Imagine yourself at a gas pump. You’ve swiped your card, … -
In the shadow of Uber's rise, taxi driver suicides leave cabbies shaken [NBC]
I know this is a bummer news, but I feel responsible sharing it. BTW, no, that isn't the guy who … -
Uber adopts continuous driver background checks [CNet]
I don't know what "continous background check" is, but it sounds cool and super evil. We expect nothing less from … -
Are taxis officially dead? How are they surviving?
So, we used to hear the feud between Uber and Taxi quite a bit in the past, but I feel … -
I am a driver and I forgot to start the trip. In fact, I forget very often. Any advice?
This must be an old habit for me as a taxi driver. I pick up the user, and I start … -
Uber and Lyft are undermining NYC's green taxis [NYPost]
This was such a knee-jerk reaction during the worst team. We all said it was stupid to introduce a new … -
How many miles does a NYC taxi do in its vehicle's lifetime?
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Don’t worry, It’s just water from my stomach… (from UberMan)
Okay, I’ll cut to the chase. I was puked on. That’s right….not just all over the car, but all over … -
How do Uber and Lyft distribute their drivers? They seem to brag about incre...
How do Uber and Lyft distribute their drivers? They seem to brag about increased response time, but how can they … -
Female Experience as a Uber Driver
I was driving around for 45 minutes, took me 10 minutes to get to the fare, drove 5 minutes and … -
Why Uber Is A Scam - Math Explains
Here's the math considering Uber commissions, fuell, depreciation of the car,taxes, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgQPj90OrQETranscript -
Sexy Taxi driver calendar is here. Your turn Uber!!
Love the confidence in these guys' eyes. You know they are cool people just looking at them. http://ny.curbed.com/2016/11/15/13639372/sexy-taxi-driver-2017-calendar-nyc -
Is Uber Pricing really guaranteed?
Is it really guaranteed? I have never used Uber and this is something I wonder about. How is this possible? … -
Do Uber and Lyft tax your earnings or do they send you 1099's at the end of the year?
see topic
Featured Answers by jbauer
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Imagine the steps it takes.
- You see the request comes up. You accept.
- You drive to the restaurant.
- You find a parking spot.
- You walk inside the restaurant.
- You wait until the hostess can approach you.
- You wait until the food comes out.
- You walk back to the car.
- You drive to your destination.<-------------------The time you make money.
- You arrive then look for a parking spot.
- You walk to the address.
- You knock and wait at the door.
- You hand over the food
Tell me how this is worth it.
This should be one of reasons to get a ride from a complete stranger.
The problem is that it's always their words against yours. Time and time again, the drivers just say they didn't see the belongings, and that usually ends the conversation. It's worse because passengers often aren't 100% sure what they did with the bag. They often think, "oh crap, where's my bag? Did I leave it in the cab? No, I couldn't have." This is how a huge majority of people react. (I mean, no one thinks about it as they shut the door.)
If they are cornered, they just say, maybe the next passenger took it? Yep. It's a standard line. cabbies know it.
You'd think with the full documentation that comes native to an online booking that this type of crime no longer exists, but...I guess it does.
Do you want to know something that will make you mad? This is actually a known thing among the taxi drivers (at least in NYC) to try to make passengers forget their belongs on the car. They make out a bandit when someone leaves a purse or a wallet. ...and they learn the taste of it and it leads to shady things. For example, these are actual moves cab drivers actually employ.
It was a cash business before. Many taxi drivers didn’t pay taxes as a result of this.
You’d think they keep track but nope.
How’s that for how a driver chooses the taxi over Uber.
No idea who Taraji P is. Is this one of those hiphop Youtube influencers I keep hearing about. (From young people)
Right. Like taxis.
I don’t know what a blockchain is. Do they sell them at Home Depot? Why would I want it as a poor unskilled cab driver
I think it's wonderful to be prepared for all kinds of emergencies. Taxi and Uber drivers can be very effective in handling emergencies, as they are readily available and mobile in all areas of the city, they are available at all hours, etc.
The concept of "Taxi on Patrol" has been a noble cause in the past, where taxi drivers were trained, requested, encouraged, and even required (in some cases) to report crimes while on shift. Can you imagine thousands of drivers' eyes watching the streets at night?
Mobile medical provider can be a huge help too. Carrying around medicine in the back of taxis. Not sure the cost to equip and train the drivers though.
One thing I learned over the years is that no matter how much you speed, you really don't save that much money. It's all psychology. If you drive at 60 mph instead of 50 mph, considering that you will be driving at high speeds only half the time, you will only save 1 mintue from a 10 minute drive.
Driving in the city? Say in a ity where it takes 10 minutes to go 1.5 mile. Most of the time is at red lights, stop signs, pedestrians, etc. Stepping on it between those obstacles, speeding up and down quickly, will not save you much time at all.
This is my most popular post on RideGuru regarding my honest opinion about UberEats.
Imagine the steps it takes.
Tell me how this is worth it.
https://ride.guru/lounge/p/is-uber-eats-worth-it-for-drivers#comment-2560
This is also scary.
Usually between fares. Right now, just got home off a shift. I love driving nights.
slow. rest. watch football. get ready for the busy Monday.
Honestly. Don't drive on Sundays. It should be a day for you to spend time with your family.
You are a warm sympathetic person. Instead of labeling her as a horrible person, you assumed she had a bad day. Giving the benefit of the doubt. I think that is very respectful and there should be more of that in the world.
I don't even understand the question
#9. The Used to be a Cabbie is me.
Actually "wait time" on a taxi isn't the duration of the ride. It's the time the taxi *waits* in traffic, red lights, and stop signs.
Their taximeters are more sophisticated than how Uber tracks the rides per GPS. They are aware of the vehicle's speed, so this "wait time" does not kick in unless the car is at a stop or moving very slowly, say less than 5mph.
So, taxis only charge you either for the per distance fee OR the wait time fee. Never both at the same time. At least that's the case with most markets.
Yes, but more in combination with other things. For example, if you see a woman riding alone, at 3:00AM, she looks freshened, and isn't going home...I can usually surmise that she is "working." I mean who looks like that at those hours? and riding alone? Dressed like that?
There are also other queues, right? Like cash payments. Going to a new address, and she is not aware of the destination.
Also remember that I used to drive a taxi and some clients would call me. I had regulars that used my service in Allston/Boston to get around. They would call me up and I have seen patterns in their rides and where their "customers" lived.
Great stories. I actually find it cute that you are so surprised.
I've been driving taxis for more than 25 years, and I have picked up a plenty of prostitutes and have had great conversations with many of them. Many keep to themselves, but it's pretty obvious when they are "working."
Taxis is the primary transport for working girls (and men). If I drove the weekends, I would regularly get calls from them. In some cases, I've been told to wait outside because the stop will be quick. So many stories I can share....
Most obvious times were always 2:00AM to 5:00AM on the weekends. Then again, they do happen at other times too. Random Tuesday nights. Random Thursday mornings. LOL.
There are some etiquettes with taxi driving for sure. For example, grabbing that person who is hailing on the curb. Actually, that's a bad example because there don't seem to be any rules around that!
There are unwritten rules about not cutting in line at taxi stands, airport queues, etc. We also do make friends when we look out for each other's cabs, say when we take bathroom breaks, etc.
Taxi drivers do gang up, and some have radios to communicate with each other. We can pass each other pax, when we our selves are busy, for example. Remember that the dispatch and cabbies are not closely tied like with a Uber or something. We can take our own phone calls from regular customers, we can pick up off the streets, and we can be subscribed to mutiple dispatching companies. If we get too busy with too many incoming rides, we can send each other passengers.