Beck Taxi is taking note of its large ad on the wall at Yonge St near Davisville Ave. Wednesday morning. The ad evokes a bad night with the wrong guy and how to get home safely. Safety would be a key element in any firm dealing with the Uber onslaught.
Great campaign. Lovely image and message.
Let’s be clear. Uber isn’t inherently unsafe. Full Stop.
You and I, being male, don’t really see the seedy underbelly of taxi drivers, but my partner, who is female, has dealt with this first-hand. Late-night taxi drivers making comments like “you should be an exotic dancer!” or implying how difficult it is to find a nice girl and how they’d love to show someone like her what a real relationship should be like, etc. etc. – an *incredibly* uncomfortable experience for someone to be alone in a vehicle in that situation.
And what is your recourse in a situation like that? I can tell you, from personal experience, what the results have been: 1 – call Beck. They say thay’ll talk to the driver, but there’s no followup to you, the rider, or indeed, any way for you to know if anything happened at all. 2 – the Taxi support line run by the city. After explaining the specifics to the support agent, they’ll ask you “Well, would you like to file charges?” If the answer is no (and seriously, who wants to go through that mess?) they’ll tell you that unfortunately, there’s nothing they can do for you, then.
So, for traditional taxis, the end result is pretty much nothing, and the driver is very likely still driving with no way for his next passengers to know anything was amiss.
Uber?
First, in these cases Uber would almost certainly refund your trip. Small compensation for the circumstance but a much better customer service experience. Second? You can leave a 1 star review for the driver with explicit details, and Uber has a reputation of having no qualms about removing drivers who are low-rated or receive complaints.
Lastly, and specifically to the case of a bad date and wanting to get home? Uber will show you the *exact* location your vehicle is at, and will pick you up anywhere. No need to call a cab and give a specific address then wait there, even if it’s unsafe because your “bad date” is still hanging around. With Uber you can walk off and still get your ride, or you can leave the safety of the restaurant or wherever only when you know the car has almost arrived.
And no one else will come up and take your Uber, either – versus someone else stepping into your Taxi.
Uber is a lot of things. But “unsafe” is a red herring.
Taxi companies, drivers and vehicles are closely monitored by the local, provincial and federal governments. Uber , its drivers and vehicles are not. How can you make such a such comment.
I want my daughter taking a cab!!!!