Uber offers many benefits that can’t always be matched by conventional taxis, including higher pay for driver partners and lower fare for passengers. Although the financial advantages are significant, many other things also make travel by Uber superior to travel by traditional taxi.
Uber Drivers Are Well Paid
Image via Flickr by defaulterror
On average, full-time Uber driver partners make more money than taxi drivers do. The typical taxi driver makes $30,000 per year working full-time, but in large cities, an uberX partner can make from $50,000 to $75,000 per year. Although these figures do not take into account the costs of maintaining a personal vehicle, the increased salary, along with the flexibility in hours, gives the edge to Uber.
Uber Fares Are Affordable
Not only are Uber partners making more money, but passengers are saving money by choosing Uber. Traditional taxis use a combined pricing system, charging for both mileage and time, but Uber uses a more cost-effective formula, charging for miles when you’re traveling faster than 11 miles per hour but by the minute when you’re in traffic. Being charged for either mileage or time — but not both — can result in fares that are as much as 20% lower than traditional taxi fares.
Uber Offers a Range of Options
Travelers who choose Uber can choose among several different types of Uber rides. The least expensive option is uberX, which uses everyday four-door sedans. Then there’s uberSUV, which allows up to six passengers. However, if you travel by uberSELECT, you can expect a luxury car complete with leather interior; similarly, uberBLACK involves commercially licensed driving partners and livery vehicles, typically black SUVs or luxury sedans. Moreover, riders in New York; Washington, D.C.; or Philadelphia can choose uberFAMILY, an uberX ride featuring an installed car seat.
Uber Rides Reduce Risk
Because passengers pay for Uber rides using a credit card attached to their online account, drivers need not keep cash in their car, removing a common incentive for robbery. And because passengers are encouraged to rate their drivers, future riders can use publicly available driver ratings to help them choose the best driver available. But just as passengers rate partners, so partners also rate passengers, helping keep both partners and passengers safe by allowing both to pick and choose rides and drivers.
Uber Helps Those Who Need Helping
Uber actively recruits those who are in particular need of financial help. In particular, Uber is actively seeking partnerships with veterans of the armed forces, members of AARP, women, and those who live with disabilities. Uber intends to have hired 50,000 military vets by 2016 — and 1 million women by 2020.
For deaf or hard-of-hearing partners, Uber offers technology to assist interactions with passengers. Technological help is also available for blind passengers, and service animals are always welcome in Uber vehicles. All Uber partners are able to accommodate folding wheelchairs, and in larger areas, many Uber partners are being trained to particularly assist those who live with disabilities.
Uber offers advantages that conventional taxis can’t always match. From better pay to better fares, and from more vehicle options to higher levels of safety — as well as by actively recruiting those who are in need of financial freedom — both passengers and driver partners have good reasons for choosing Uber over traditional taxis.
Have you ever taken Uber instead of a taxi? Let us know in the comments below.
