Uber to Resume in Calgary December 6 2016

[northcrunk]

Originally Posted by para transit fellow

Chestermere isn't subject to the Calgary Livery bylaw- You can set up your own cab company and your own rates tomorrow in Chestermere ( but I thinK you might need a Chestermere business licence).

but if you go with uber at the Chestermere summer festivals... you probably can take advantage of the Uber's surge pricing

I think that would be the best time to do it. I think a business licence in Chestermere is 50 bucks or so. I could start my own but then I have to put money into marketing. At least Uber has the infrastructure and marketing in place.

[Poster]

Originally Posted by Frequitude

No, they should work for fair market value in a free market. Not the market value set by an artificial limit on taxi driver supply.

I would argue that we only get one of those with regular taxis in this city - quality. Calgary taxis are hard to get (i.e. not fast) and expensive (i.e. not cheap). They are, for the most part, a high quality service in between pickup and payment though.

I dont disagee and Uber should be allowed. Like another poster said even if Uber was more expensive it would still be valuable. If Taxi people want to protect their investment, they should be looking to add value so they can charge more, like at least 1 poster is willing to pay.

[bizaro86]

I posted the following message to the mayor here: http://calgarymayor.ca/contact

I was extremely disappointed to read your comments on Uber. As our mayor, you should be representing what is best for all Calgarians, not just a small group of politically connected ones in the taxi lobby. Treating all market participants fairly is not a policy objective the city should worry about. Setting prices is archaic in this day and age, and there is no reason not to let competition come to the taxi industry, which has served Calgarians poorly for so long.

Regulations around safety and insurance are of course within the city's purview, but pricing and artificially restricting the number of plates shouldn't be. To say it's being worked on is disingenuous when no progress has been made for years.

I voted and campaigned for you starting from your first election, but will not do so again unless real progress is made on this issue. Depressingly, Edmonton is ahead of Calgary, which is embarrassing.

____________________________________
The only way this will change is if council thinks it will cost them more votes than they can buy with taxi lobby money.

[Torture]

Originally Posted by accord1999

Maybe you got lucky, Chicago is one of those markets that already allow vehicles from 2001 to work. And at only 90c/mile before Uber cut and given the costs of operating a newer vehicle in a big city (IRS mileage rate is about 57c/mile), most drivers are barely covering the operating costs of a newer vehicle. It's even worse in cities that are at 75c/mile like Detroit.

There are forums like http://uberpeople.net/ where you can read up on the experiences of Uber drives. The cars driven by those making a living at Uber end up being similar to cars driven by taxi drivers, older depreciated, fuel efficient and reliable models like a Prius.

What's the issue with getting a ride on a fuel efficient reliable Prius? That sounds like a good thing..
As long as the vehicle's in good shape and safe to be on the road I don't really care.

[Senator Clay Davis]

Originally Posted by bizaro86

I posted the following message to the mayor here: http://calgarymayor.ca/contact

I was extremely disappointed to read your comments on Uber. On this issue, depressingly, Edmonton is ahead of Calgary, which is embarrassing.

You should have just shortened it to this. That's all that needs to be said.

[Locke]

And in regards to the concerns of the Taxi Drivers themselves, I empathize, but their outrage is misdirected.

The regulations surrounding the acquisition of permits is restrictive and borderline monopolistic making Taxi services in Calgary almost extortionist. You do as they say or else.

Well this is the 'or else.'

The Drivers themselves object to Uber and the reasoning is completely understandable, but their anger is misdirected. It isnt the City or the Users that they should be angry at, nor is it Uber, it should be their employers who, as I said in my previous post, brought this on themselves.

They are employees in the unfortunate position that their employers made poor business decisions in order to maintain their untenable position.

[The Yen Man]

There's nothing stopping those taxi drivers from switching over to Uber if they feel their livelihood is in danger. Adapt or GTFO. I'm tired of their half assed service and availability at exorbitant prices.

[Huntingwhale]

Originally Posted by Hemi-Cuda

Any argument against Uber in Calgary will always fall on deaf ears as long as it's impossible to actually get a taxi on a weekend. The industry has done it to themselves by refusing to improve, zero sympathy from me

Couldn't have said it better myself. The crap the citizens in this city have put up with when it comes to taxis is atrocious. If Calgary ever hopes to reach the standard of what is considered a world class city, we NEED good reliable taxi service. That has never existed in this town. 99% of the population is sick and tired of not receiving that and the other 1% are those that owned the taxi monopoly for decades.

To f'ing bad if the taxi drivers and cab owners are crying about this. To f'ing bad. You had your chance to improve things and you didn't. I'll never forget those many night on NYE trying to get a taxi and are left out in the cold for 2-3 hours. Or every single night during Stampede driving through downtown and seeing literally thousands of people trying to hail cabs to no avail.

The only bad thing about Uber is that it took this long to get here.

[GreenLantern]

My experience with Uber is limited, we used it for about a week on our honeymoon in California, but it is very positive.

Total trips would be somewhere around a dozen, and I rated all of them 5 stars. Every driver was polite, prompt and understanding. I even screwed up a few times and dropped the pin in the wrong spot, so they went to pick me up at my drop off point. I got a "No worries, honest mistake, on my way" response the first time. I obviously tipped generously to make up for my error.

Every car was in great shape, clean enough to eat off and the driver was very professional. I chatted with all of them and for some it was a part time gig they did in the evenings and weekends on top of their 9-5. Others it was full time, but either way they took it very seriously and were adamant about making it a great experience for you.

On top of all of that, the rates were cheaper than a taxi even while being a generous tipper.

So, more efficient, more enjoyable and more affordable. Why would you not use this service?

[Locke]

Originally Posted by The Yen Man

There's nothing stopping those taxi drivers from switching over to Uber if they feel their livelihood is in danger. Adapt or GTFO. I'm tired of their half assed service and availability at exorbitant prices.

Very true, thats the flip-side of the coin, the barriers of entry to becoming an Uber driver are fairly simple, not low, but simple. A decent car could conceivably be out of some people's realm of affordability.

My only point was not to blame the drivers themselves, and the drivers shouldnt blame us, the City or Uber.

[darklord700]

Not to say I am against Uber but if I pay for exclusive right to sell beer inside Saddledome, and now an app allows beer to be delivered to the dome, I'll be pretty pissed too.

Uber will be uber useful this Christmas party season. But with the layoff and the scale back on spending, I doubt this Christmas season will be that busy to be a true test.

[longsuffering]

Have I got this right? As far as Uber supporters are concerned personal convenience trumps insurance issues (liability and personal injury), tax avoidance (GST, tax on earnings), not to mention the potential impact on those making their living driving taxis today.

We've had 2 "layoff" threads bemoaning job losses due to the downturn in the oil industry (economic/market forces) but as far as cab driver go it's "suck it up .... free market!

Maybe somebody should let those posting in the "layoff' thread about the earnings potential of becoming an Uber driver.





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[The Yen Man]

Originally Posted by Locke

Very true, thats the flip-side of the coin, the barriers of entry to becoming an Uber driver are fairly simple, not low, but simple. A decent car could conceivably be out of some people's realm of affordability.

My only point was not to blame the drivers themselves, and the drivers shouldnt blame us, the City or Uber.

Oh for sure. I'm all for letting market forces drive the outcome. What GMG is the city somehow thinking it's their responsibility to protect the well being of the taxi industry.

[bizaro86]

Originally Posted by Senator Clay Davis

You should have just shortened it to this. That's all that needs to be said.

Feel free to send your own message to the mayor/council.

In fact - I highly suggest it.

http://calgarymayor.ca/contact

http://www.calgary.ca/councillors/Pa...ouncillor.aspx

[habernac]

Originally Posted by peter12

But it boils down to price, right?

Cab prices blow, but this is about availability, plain and simple. The cab companies have proven to be unreliable.

[Jbo]

Without moving away from the topic at hand, it's sad to see Nenshi's statements. I voted for him thinking he might be a different politician, bring new ideas to city council. However, he has been at worst, ineffective, and at best irrelevant.

Don't want to see this dragged on forever, Uber is a great service, and I plan to use it this week to support them.

[calf]

Originally Posted by CliffFletcher

But isn't one of the problems with the current system the $100,000+ cost of a cab plate? Presumably the Uber drivers won't have to operate on a model where they expect to earn that investment back.

It's $100k if someone buys it second hand. I believe the cost from the city when the plates are for sale via lottery are much less. IMO, that's the risk the cabbies take when making that purchase, that at some point, the city could open the flood gates, change regulations, making that plate you bought worthless.

[Poster]

Originally Posted by pylon

BS.

I have talked to a ton of people that have used Uber in the states, and they are getting all 3.

I cannot remember the last time a cab provided me with more than one. My last cab ride with a major Cab company:

Camry with 450,000 kms, a broken front suspension, and smelled like it has a gas leak, and a driver that reeked of BO and had breath that would choke a maggot. Quality? no

Waited 45 minutes for that Heap of Garbage. Fast? No

Paid $36 to go from 1 block from Chinook Centre, to Northland Mall. Affordable? No.

edit: this specific case is not an argument against what I said. this taxi failed to meet any of the conditons. what i am saying is that you cant provide all 3 of fast, cheap, good at the same time of a consistent period.

I support Uber but 2 of cheap, fast or good is a universal truth in quality. While you may have a specific case detailing otherwise, over the long term its simply not possible to be the fastest, cheapest and best all at the same time.

[Huntingwhale]

Originally Posted by darklord700

Not to say I am against Uber but if I pay for exclusive right to sell beer inside Saddledome, and now an app allows beer to be delivered to the dome, I'll be pretty pissed too.

Uber will be uber useful this Christmas party season. But with the layoff and the scale back on spending, I doubt this Christmas season will be that busy to be a true test.

I agree 100%. I'd be pissed too if I was them. But to that I say that sometimes things need to be done for the greater good instead of for the benefit of a small minority. Clearly the way taxis have operated in Calgary have benefited only a few and the rest are made to suffer. That's not right.

[HotHotHeat]

“The [Alberta] government has not decided as of yet … whether to defend the taxi industry or open the market up for Uber,” an Alberta government official said. This summer, Alberta’s Superintendent of Insurance warned that drivers are not insurance-compliant and had to get their coverage up to par.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/repor...ticle26792745/

Tweeted Nenshi this link and asked if he has spoken with the Premier about Uber, no response (which I wasn't expecting).