Monday, January 09, 2017

Uber Passengers Get Insight To Life Without The London Taxi Trade

Furious Uber customers slam minicab firm for TRIPLING its rates during London Underground strikes


UBER has been accused of “greed” after the company tripled its prices to cash in as the London Underground grounds to a halt.

The minicab app imposed “surge pricing” as tube lines shut down causing the cost of typical journeys to soar.

It comes as thousands of commuters face a morning of misery caused by tube strikes.

Talks to avoid the strike action failed in the last hours, meaning the 24-hour strike is now in full swing as commuters try to get to work this morning.


Uber users tweeted their anger at the online minicab company, expressing outrage as Uber fares rose by up to three times when thousands were struggling to get to work.

One traveller wrote:”Only people happy about the tube strike are Uber drivers.£50 for a journey that normally costs a tenner.”


Another commented: “Uber drivers just making bank today, god bless capitalism #TubeStrike”

“Uber trying to charge £50 to get to work on tube strike day?? A disgrace,” one user added.

An Uber spokesperson said “the company’s pricing is to ensure that you can get a car no matter what” and insist that this is “not a surcharge that are adding on for the tube strikes”.


The spokesperson added: “The fare increases automatically, and only in response to real-time demand when there are not enough available cars.

“As all of the licensed driver who use the Uber app work independently, higher fares incentive more drivers to go online so we can help more people get where they need to go.

“Without this pricing model there would simply be no cars available.”
Up to 4,000 station and ticket staff will walk out from 6pm on Sunday as part of the ongoing dispute over staffing numbers.

The walkout and impending threat of more industrial action is in protest at 800 jobs cuts and ticket office closures under former mayor Boris Johnson’s regime.

Source : Sun Online 






8 comments:

Anonymous said...

The public will get surge shafted today and complain; tomorrow they will be only too happy to give Uber their coin.
They don't care about next week, next month or next year.

When I got asked at Christmas aaah, much to to Ollaway?

I replied... about half as much as Uber are currently charging, do you have the app?

Punter: Yes mate

My reply... ENJOY!

Anonymous said...

Loved reading this. Ave' it ! You reap what you sow, narrow minded commuters ! Good for Uber. Good luck to them ! And either go and buy yourselves a decent push bilke, or get used to Uber charging £60 fares what we would do for a tenner !
I hope they put it up to £100 next time.
What's that old saying ? You only know what you're missing...........when it's gone !
Keep supporting the Cowboys cheap skates, and suffer consequences like you're getting now for the future.
Go for it Uber ! Hit 'em where it hurts !

Semtex.

Anonymous said...

The amount of PHVs in London today was simply staggering. Yellow roundels passing me in batches of 5 or 6 vehicles at a time. Stream broken only by odd black cab or a commercial vehicle, then another 5-6 PHVs immediately following along. Like flies around shit. Thanks TFL, thanks for undermining London Taxis and turning this city into a stinking mess.

Anonymous said...



Shame all the vermin working their TFL licensed cars here in Bristol didn't,t head up to the smoke to reap the rewards of the tube strike.....................oh hang on ,they probably don't know the fucking way...............

Unknown said...

The public have a short memory, tomorrow they won't care.

Pensive said...

This topic came up the other day under the 2nd letter from Val Shawcross topic when I posted that Uber are trying to undermine/undercut licensed taxis the world over with a view to creating a virtual monopoly using cheap labour and cheap vehicles working under 3rd world conditions, perhaps exploiting drivers in what may be called 'sweatshop' conditions - that so many Uber drivers complain of. No tachographs for them then? But that's another story.

This quadruple pricing, however Uber want to describe it, is what will no doubt happen when their business plan succeeds and they have little or no serious competition when our numbers will be seriously depleted and fighting amongst ourselves for work. Their prices will soar and they will be able to repay the massive loans that their Corporate sponsors have invested in them. At present they run a huge deficit in spite of paying NO tax in the UK. Make no mistake, they will capitalise on their new-found lack of competition and can charge whatever they feel they can get away with as LPH (which they say they aren't) have, under the London Private Hire Act 1998, have no fare restrictions whatsoever (Unregulated). Each LPH company is free to determine its own tariff or fare structure. So it begs the question... If Uber aren't (as they claim) a LPH company how are they able to set their fares? In fact how did they come to accept LPH licensing if they aren't a LPH company? How does that work? I hope one of the regular readers has the answer to all this. For future reference I shall write my occasional postings under the name 'Pensive' to avoid confusion with other 'anonymous' contributors. Be lucky! This has never had a more poignant meaning with the circumstances the trade now finds itself in.

colin said...

I wonder how many Uber's reported sick from their normal job's yesterday so they could work the illegal App,as for me i took a score less than normal,Thank's Tfl.

LLOYD T said...

Would rather walk than use Uber...
TFL .. hang your heads in shame!
Back the Black cabs!!!