Comment by chrisseaton
6 years ago
> Is it just the benefit of being able to browse in one app/website everything available for be delivered to you?
Yes I think that’s a big part of it.
That’s a big part of Uber as well - I can fly into a city not knowing anything about how they do taxi and get an Uber.
What airports are you flying into where you could avoid signage/references to local taxis/buses/transit if you wanted to? Heck, most have taxi stands right outside baggage claim, if not all exits.
The cost for a taxi is way less reliable, and harder to dispute. It's a common but unpleasant way to arrive to a new city to realise you've been shafted on the taxi fare.
100% my least favorite part of traveling in the pre-rideshare world. Has happened to me plenty of times.
If taxis just had upfront pricing and followed Google Maps it wouldn’t be a problem. I’d my happy to give them my business. I don’t really care too much about the app or whatever.
Like it could be super informal like $1/minute for whatever it says on Google Maps at the start and it would be fine.
It's the how that matters. Some countries have "interesting" taxi ecosystems.
I had a friend whose taxi would drop her off to a certain part of the city she was in in Malaysia. She liked him and wanted him to bring her back home later because she felt safe. He couldn't. Apparently there were taxi gangs controlling territory and he could only drop off and GTFO.
Or there's what I saw in Peru where a guy was selling TAXI signs at a traffic light. That's all it takes in some countries, whack that on top and you're good to go. Nice to get a tourist halfway down the freeway then "renegotiate".
> Or there's what I saw in Peru where a guy was selling TAXI signs at a traffic light.
This is literally what Uber/Lyft are doing. You don’t even need to leave the house.
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Not the where, the how.
How much do they cost? Do they know where my hotel is or do I need to provide a specific address for their GPS? Are specific taxis limited to specific jurisdictions? Can I get a van if I have 6 people or do I need two vehicles? Do they go out as far as the somewhat rural university? How about to the manufacturing plant 20 km outside the city?
If you are a tourist you will get charged more if you hail a taxi from most Indian airports.
It’s not where they pickup, it’s things like how much do they cost, do they take cards, are they even safe to use?