Uber coming to OKC

[Just the facts]

Taking I235 to I44 to I35 is not a strange route to get to edmond if the couple lived anywhere near I-35 as opposed to Broadway...

Sounds like the driver should have offered an alternate route, and sounds like the (probably intoxicated) passengers should have shown more respect. If the claims are true, you don't slap and grab someone - especially if they are driving the car you are in...

I have taken a few drunk people (which is my least favorite part of the job) and some of them have asked me to take some screwy routes to get where they want to go, only to change their mind about the destination when we get there. I don't care. If they are in my car and the tab is running I'll take them where ever they want to go and take any route they suggest.

[OKCretro]

Taking I235 to I44 to I35 is not a strange route to get to edmond if the couple lived anywhere near I-35 as opposed to Broadway...

Sounds like the driver should have offered an alternate route, and sounds like the (probably intoxicated) passengers should have shown more respect. If the claims are true, you don't slap and grab someone - especially if they are driving the car you are in...

Um I-44 and 23rd is no where close to I-235. very weird route to get to Edmond from the colcord. guessing the driver was lost.

[Anonymous.]

Ah, did not catch and process that information of where they stopped @ 23rd. I assumed the driver took 235 from downtown to 44. Yea sounds like the driver went all the way from 40 to 44. Yea that is an inefficient route.

[Just the facts]

Ah, did not catch and process that information of where they stopped @ 23rd. I assumed the driver took 235 from downtown to 44. Yea sounds like the driver went all the way from 40 to 44. Yea that is an inefficient route.

Not if you are trying to jack up the bill on some drunk people. Taxi drivers do this all the time. I had a friend who was on his first trip to Oakland, CA and mentioned that to the taxi driver - huge mistake! Not only did he get stuck with a huge bill (thanks to the scenic route) but the taxi driver also told him the meter was broken and the bill was really 2X what the meter said. Being naïve and non-confrontational my friend paid the bill. Maybe if he had been drinking the taxi driver would need dental work.

[Richard at Remax]

I have friends who live in Rose Creek area and from downtown take 40-44-hefner parkway-then eventually Portland to get home.

[onthestrip]

The taxi and limo industry will happily utilize this to further their anti-uber agenda, even though it'll prove nothing about uber

[Pete]

Where are all the Oklahoman articles on the scores of incidents that happen with taxis?

They seem to have an agenda when reporting on Uber, or at the very least completely fail to provide prospective.

[adaniel]

I have friends who live in Rose Creek area and from downtown take 40-44-hefner parkway-then eventually Portland to get home.

It should be pointed out a lot of people who live in that area consider themselves to be in Edmond even though its OKC limits, which is a MAJOR pet peeve of mine BTW.

[Pete]

^

Yes, most people consider anything north of Memorial to be Edmond.

Primarily because it is the Edmond school district and even some of the zip codes are listed as Edmond.

[BBatesokc]

Where are all the Oklahoman articles on the scores of incidents that happen with taxis?

They seem to have an agenda when reporting on Uber, or at the very least completely fail to provide prospective.

Agenda? Who knows. More than likely just typical lazy reporting. Some reporter was either called and told about the lawsuit or someone saw it while sifting through civil actions filed.

[BBatesokc]

I have taken a few drunk people (which is my least favorite part of the job) and some of them have asked me to take some screwy routes to get where they want to go, only to change their mind about the destination when we get there. I don't care. If they are in my car and the tab is running I'll take them where ever they want to go and take any route they suggest.

Only used Uber once, but doesn't Uber pretty much decide the route to take? How else could they give the patron the cost up front?

And, if they change the destination - how does Uber handle that? Wouldn't the patron have to go back into their app and pick another destination so Uber could charge them?

Not if you are trying to jack up the bill on some drunk people.

Can you do that with Uber? Again, I'm fairly naive about the service, but don't they pick a point A and a point B and the price is pretty much set?

[BBatesokc]

Also, I inclined to think that if I drove for Uber on a regular basis I'd spend a couple hundred bucks on a dash cam that videos both the outside and inside of the car.

Just an extra bit on insurance.

[Pete]

Agenda? Who knows. More than likely just typical lazy reporting. Some reporter was either called and told about the lawsuit or someone saw it while sifting through civil actions filed.

Comments by reporters on Twitter over the last 6 months or makes me think it's more than that.

[Richard at Remax]

yeah I live just nw of 150th and western, Edmond address and schools but OKC utilities.

[Just the facts]

Where are all the Oklahoman articles on the scores of incidents that happen with taxis?

They seem to have an agenda when reporting on Uber, or at the very least completely fail to provide prospective.

From the article.

Ridesharing services lack adequate insurance coverage and other safeguards to protect passengers, said David Sutton, spokesman for the Who’s Driving You? campaign, launched by the industry group the Taxicab, Limousine & Paratransit Association. The campaign claims that ridesharing services are unsafe and unregulated.

“These services are under invested in their public safety costs, and it results in this type of thing— it’s not that much of a surprise,” Sutton said.

If taxis are the result of regulation and safety give me unregulated Uber any day. Just google "killed by taxi". I rode in a taxi in NYC that didn't even have seatbelts.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ridi...icle-1.1036853

“If the partitions in taxis on the road now were subject to federal safety standards and crash tests, they would all flunk,” said another taxi official.

[Just the facts]

I'm not even sure why a comment from a party not even involved in the situation was even included, unless....

[Pete]

Just do a search for 'Uber' on Newsok.com and follow the tweets of Oklahoma reporters and you'll see a consistent pattern of putting the service in a negative light with absolutely zero context or comparison to traditional taxi and limo services.

I noticed this approach from the outset and it's been very consistent. I merely think the people reporting and commenting on this for the Oklahoman have absolutely zero experience with Uber outside the very recent start-up of the OKC service.

Given that limitation, you'd think there would be some attempt to put things in a broader perspective, such as taking a look at how this has been working very successfully in the many cities that have had the system up and running for quite some time now.

Absolutely nothing about the issues presented are unique to Oklahoma City and Uber & Lyft are incredibly popular and valued services in the cities they serve.

[Just the facts]

Only used Uber once, but doesn't Uber pretty much decide the route to take? How else could they give the patron the cost up front?

And, if they change the destination - how does Uber handle that? Wouldn't the patron have to go back into their app and pick another destination so Uber could charge them?

Not if you are trying to jack up the bill on some drunk people.

Can you do that with Uber? Again, I'm fairly naive about the service, but don't they pick a point A and a point B and the price is pretty much set?

The 'price' you are given up front by the app is an estimated range. The actual cost is calculated by the phone in my car which records the time and distance. At the end of the ride a total is calculated and sent to the rider. On my side I have a price adjustment option if something went wrong on the trip but the one thing I can't do is adjust the price up. I am sure on the riders side there is the same option. I have never had anyone complain about the price but have had 2 people tell me the total trip cost was lower than the low-end of the range they were provided pre-trip.

If you got in my car drunk and I took you on the scenic route to your house I am sure there is a path somewhere for you to dispute the price, at which point Uber would review my route (I can review every trip I made) and respond accordingly.

As for the destination - the app tells you the price to the destination you enter, but as a driver I don't see your destination - you have to tell me. I assume this is so drivers won't pick and choose which rides to accept. If you change your mind mid-ride I'll take you to where ever you want to go. I have even had a group of 6 who needed to be split across 2 trips. We were discussing the best way to do it because only one person had an Uber account. We decided it was just easier to keep the ride open while I drove back and got the second group. It cost them a few dollars more but it solved the problem. I have even picked up a group of 3 people at a restaurant who all went to different homes. Like I said, as long as the meter is running I don't care where we go. I am still waiting for someone who wants to go Daytona or Orlando - a trip I would be more than happy to provide.

[Pete]

The Oklahoman just posted this story from the LA Times:

Uber driver accused of kidnapping LA clubgoer, taking her to motel | News OK

[Just the facts]

The Oklahoman just posted this story from the LA Times:

Uber driver accused of kidnapping LA clubgoer, taking her to motel | News OK

This is what is darn frustrating. She was NOT an Uber customer at the time and he was not an Uber provider at the time - yet the headline is Uber driver accused of kidnapping...

She told police she had been bar-hopping the night before and may have used Uber to get home. The woman reportedly has an account with the service.

But Vernon said police discovered that her phone was dead and that she did not call Uber. She led police to the hotel room, where they found Dencer. He talked to officers, but Vernon said his story did not make sense.

Soon after, officers reviewed surveillance video showing Dencer helping the woman get out of his car, holding her hand as she struggled to walk and then eventually carrying her into the hotel room, Vernon said.

The woman was reportedly too drunk to tell Dencer where she lived, so he never collected a fare from her and drove to the motel, Vernon said.

He never collected a fare from her because she DIDN'T call Uber. Anyhow, if you don't try to have sex with drunk women you don't get put in this kind of situation.

[FighttheGoodFight]

Uber Driver With Felony Conviction Charged With Battery For Allegedly Hitting Passenger (San Francisco)

[Jchaser405]

I have used both lyft and uber multiple times. Other than the drivers switching to hip hop music when I get in(lol) i have have o problems and have become a raving fan. It is shameful that a member of the limo&taxi lobby was chosen to be the expert interview for the article.

[onthestrip]

To keep it fair and balanced...

Santa Cruz taxi driver accused of sexually assaulting customer - Santa Cruz Sentinel

[Just the facts]

Uber Driver With Felony Conviction Charged With Battery For Allegedly Hitting Passenger (San Francisco)

Really, prosecuting for a misdemeanor after police on the scene had already determine no action was warranted? It seems the DA in San Francisco has run of things to prosecute or has an agenda.

Daveea Whitmire, a 28-year-old San Francisco resident, was charged Tuesday with two misdemeanor battery counts, one of which stems from a fight with a passenger he picked up through Uber’s low-cost UberX platform, said San Francisco district attorney George Gascon.

Yep - here is the agenda

Prosecutors hope to make this case an example of a need for stronger safety regulations among car service apps

[TheTravellers]

^

Yes, most people consider anything north of Memorial to be Edmond.

Primarily because it is the Edmond school district and even some of the zip codes are listed as Edmond.

Yes, this. Our zip code is 73013, but we live in OKC city limits. I always make it clear to people that even though we have an Edmond address, we do *not* live in Edmond, we live in OKC. :-D The PO on 33rd/Kelly extends all the way out to us (164th/May) because there was little-to-nothing where we live when the PO was built, so its boundaries encompassed a huge area, but not very many houses. Hate that PO, worst one I've ever had, folds magazines "because they were built as a rural PO with standing-up square slots for magazines, not flat ones like city POs have" (straight from the PO's mouth), lost more mail in 5 years than I've had lost in the previous 40 years all over the US.