Woking to Heathrow
 

OK, so I have had it with the Woking RailAir coach link. I need an
alternative means of reaching the airport. Train from the South Coast
to Woking is fine. But what are the alternatives for reaching the
airport?

Has anyone used Uber? How does it work? What is the service like?

Woking to Heathrow
 

e27002 aurora wrote:

OK, so I have had it with the Woking RailAir coach link. I need an
alternative means of reaching the airport. Train from the South Coast
to Woking is fine. But what are the alternatives for reaching the
airport?



Where is your journey starting from?


Anna Noyd-Dryver

Woking to Heathrow
 

On Sat, 1 Apr 2017 09:14:03 -0000 (UTC), Anna Noyd-Dryver
wrote:

e27002 aurora wrote:

OK, so I have had it with the Woking RailAir coach link. I need an
alternative means of reaching the airport. Train from the South Coast
to Woking is fine. But what are the alternatives for reaching the
airport?



Where is your journey starting from?


Starting from the Portsmouth area.

Woking to Heathrow
 

In message , at 09:14:03 on Sat, 1 Apr 2017,
Anna Noyd-Dryver remarked:

OK, so I have had it with the Woking RailAir coach link. I need an
alternative means of reaching the airport. Train from the South Coast
to Woking is fine. But what are the alternatives for reaching the
airport?

Where is your journey starting from?

And don't tell us - just stick it (and LHR) in Google maps and punch the
"train" icon.

Although if the Reading Railair link is out too, it may well be "via
Central London" is the only answer [including some via Reading,
Paddington and back].
--
Roland Perry

Woking to Heathrow
 

"e27002 aurora" wrote in message
...


Has anyone used Uber? How does it work? What is the service like?

It depends a lot on whether the service even exists in your area (I know
people who use it from Heathrow) and how many active drivers there are at
the time you want to travel.

I set up my Uber account when I was in New Jersey on business for a couple
of weeks during the summer of 2015. It worked well there. You need the Uber
app on your mobile with a registration that is easy to set up.

After that the rules vary slightly by location, but the basics a
1. use the the app to book a ride
2. your car turns up and you get in. The app gives you the driver's name and
'phone number, and the registration/description of the car. The driver will
call you if they can't find you or there is a delay.
3. when you reach your destination you get out.

That's it: no fiddling with cash or hand-written receipts (I lost a wallet
this way in a taxi recently) - it's all done by payment card and email. For
Brighton and Sussex there is a guide he
https://www.uber.com/en-GB/cities/brighton-and-sussex/

Uber first became available in Brighton and Hove about a year ago but when I
tried it soon after the launch there were never any drivers available, so I
have always used one of the local taxi firms booking by phone from home or
by taking a taxi off the rank from a local station. However, when I arrived
at Brighton Station last Thursday evening the length of queue at the rank
suggested it would be at least 10-15 minutes before I would get a ride (for
a 5 minute journey); this is because the daft queuing system only allows 1
or 2 taxis to load at a time, leading to long queues of both passengers and
taxis at busy times.

I fired up the Uber app and there were cars available within a couple of
minutes from a pick-up point just outside the station so I went for it. The
driver told me there are now around 90 drivers operating in the area, and
the fare was quite a bit less than a metered taxi. I may well take another
look at Uber when I make the reverse journey at 5.00 am on Monday morning:
no more messing about with cash and and, if my initial experience is
anything to go by, nicer cars, nicer drivers and cheaper. What's not to
like?

--
DAS

Woking to Heathrow
 

"e27002 aurora" wrote in message
...

OK, so I have had it with the Woking RailAir coach link.

still not got any better :-)

I need an
alternative means of reaching the airport. Train from the South Coast
to Woking is fine. But what are the alternatives for reaching the
airport?

It used to be possible to use the bus from Walton

every 30 minutes up until 11pm

but it's now only hourly and the last one's at 7pm (Useless!)



tim

Woking to Heathrow
 

In message , at 12:15:44 on Sat, 1 Apr
2017, D A Stocks remarked:
I may well take another look at Uber when I make the reverse journey at
5.00 am on Monday morning: no more messing about with cash and and, if
my initial experience is anything to go by, nicer cars, nicer drivers
and cheaper. What's not to like?

The alleged exploitation of their workers, the implications for
proportionate corporation tax receipts flowing to the UK, and the
possibility that having captured the market they can hike their fares.

History also shows that startups such as this are exceptional if they
succeed in the medium-long term, so what's your exit strategy if they
pull out of the Brighton market?

This is just a generic observation of the venture capital funded world,
not a prediction about any particular company trading today.

The BBC opines: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-29653830
--
Roland Perry

Woking to Heathrow
 

"D A Stocks" wrote:

if my initial experience is
anything to go by, nicer cars, nicer drivers and cheaper. What's not to
like?

I used Uber Lux for a ride across London recently. Very nice. Wondered if the
driver was doing a little moonlighting with his employer's vehicle, but that's
his business.

Woking to Heathrow
 

"Roland Perry" wrote in message
...
In message , at 12:15:44 on Sat, 1 Apr
2017, D A Stocks remarked:
I may well take another look at Uber when I make the reverse journey at
5.00 am on Monday morning: no more messing about with cash and and, if my
initial experience is anything to go by, nicer cars, nicer drivers and
cheaper. What's not to like?

The alleged exploitation of their workers, the implications for
proportionate corporation tax receipts flowing to the UK, and the
possibility that having captured the market they can hike their fares.

the one thing about the taxi trade is that they can't monopolies the market
through lower fares and then hike them when the competition pulls out

the barriers to entry for a taxi company are so low that if you take your
fares back up to the regulated maximum the competition will soon pile back
in again.

to keep the competition out you have to keep your fares low forever

which is fine if your costs of operation really are low enough to support
that, but does mean that operating an unsustainably low fare to grab market
share doesn't work.

History also shows that startups such as this are exceptional if they
succeed in the medium-long term, so what's your exit strategy if they pull
out of the Brighton market?

catch the bus

He's a user not an investor

And they aren't selling a unique product

This is just a generic observation of the venture capital funded world,
not a prediction about any particular company trading today.

The BBC opines: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-29653830

Careful, Recliner will be along soon to tell you you are an idiot

tim

Woking to Heathrow
 

In uk.railway e27002 aurora wrote:

OK, so I have had it with the Woking RailAir coach link. I need an
alternative means of reaching the airport. Train from the South Coast
to Woking is fine. But what are the alternatives for reaching the
airport?

What's the problem with the RailAir coach?
Is it M25-related?

Woking-Clapham Junction
Clapham Junction-Feltham
285 bus to LHR

is the most obvious alternative, though somewhat slow.

Guildford-Worcester Park
X26 bus to LHR

is one I haven't tried.

Has anyone used Uber? How does it work? What is the service like?

I suspect if the M25 is borked then Woking to Heathrow is going to be
difficult whatever. Staying on the train and getting off a Surbiton (if it
stops) then taking a taxi might be one way to avoid it.

Theo

Woking to Heathrow
 

On 2017\04\01 14:38, Theo wrote:
In uk.railway e27002 aurora wrote:

OK, so I have had it with the Woking RailAir coach link. I need an
alternative means of reaching the airport. Train from the South Coast
to Woking is fine. But what are the alternatives for reaching the
airport?

What's the problem with the RailAir coach?
Is it M25-related?

Woking-Clapham Junction
Clapham Junction-Feltham
285 bus to LHR

is the most obvious alternative, though somewhat slow.

Guildford-Worcester Park
X26 bus to LHR

is one I haven't tried.

Weybridge has direct trains to Feltham.

Woking to Heathrow
 

"Theo" wrote in message
...
In uk.railway e27002 aurora wrote:

OK, so I have had it with the Woking RailAir coach link. I need an
alternative means of reaching the airport. Train from the South Coast
to Woking is fine. But what are the alternatives for reaching the
airport?

What's the problem with the RailAir coach?

It gets delayed

It gets cancelled at the last minute (sometimes, but not always, due to the
above)

To catch up from a delay it sometimes dumps you at T4 (now T5) and doesn't
run to T123, leaving you to make your own way on HEx. This is OKish to the
airport but CFU for people travelling from the airport (as by the time they
find out that they need to take the train to T5 to pick up the bus it is too
late)

Oh and unless it has improved the people at the terminal don't have a
****ing clue where the bus is and how late it might be. WFT is it still
1980?

And OMG It only runs hourly now!!!! when did that happen?

Is it M25-related?

sometimes

tim

Woking to Heathrow
 

In article , (Roland Perry)
wrote:

In message , at 09:14:03 on Sat, 1 Apr
2017, Anna Noyd-Dryver remarked:

OK, so I have had it with the Woking RailAir coach link. I need an
alternative means of reaching the airport. Train from the South Coast
to Woking is fine. But what are the alternatives for reaching the
airport?

Where is your journey starting from?

And don't tell us - just stick it (and LHR) in Google maps and punch
the "train" icon.

Although if the Reading Railair link is out too, it may well be "via
Central London" is the only answer [including some via Reading,
Paddington and back].

Via Hounslow West used to be an option. Isn't it any more?

--
Colin Rosenstiel

Woking to Heathrow
 

In message , at 14:36:46 on Sat, 1 Apr 2017,
tim... remarked:
the one thing about the taxi trade is that they can't monopolies the
market through lower fares and then hike them when the competition
pulls out

the barriers to entry for a taxi company are so low that if you take
your fares back up to the regulated maximum the competition will soon
pile back in again.

to keep the competition out you have to keep your fares low forever

which is fine if your costs of operation really are low enough to
support that, but does mean that operating an unsustainably low fare to
grab market share doesn't work.

Except Uber is trying that. So your theory crashes in flames.
--
Roland Perry

Woking to Heathrow
 

In message uk9vdc1iusv3qbo78opsvoja1ik1sljco1@None, at 07:12:09 on
Sat, 1 Apr 2017, Arthur Conan Doyle remarked:
if my initial experience is
anything to go by, nicer cars, nicer drivers and cheaper. What's not to
like?

I used Uber Lux for a ride across London recently. Very nice. Wondered if the
driver was doing a little moonlighting with his employer's vehicle, but that's
his business.

Might be yours if it turns out it wasn't insured for moonlighting, and
you get injured.
--
Roland Perry

Woking to Heathrow
 

In message , at 14:38:22 on Sat,
1 Apr 2017, Theo remarked:
Staying on the train and getting off a Surbiton (if it
stops) then taking a taxi might be one way to avoid it.

Having lived in Surbiton at one time, getting from there to Heathrow by
road is a nightmare.
--
Roland Perry

Woking to Heathrow
 

"Roland Perry" wrote in message
...
In message , at 14:36:46 on Sat, 1 Apr 2017,
tim... remarked:
the one thing about the taxi trade is that they can't monopolies the
market through lower fares and then hike them when the competition pulls
out

the barriers to entry for a taxi company are so low that if you take your
fares back up to the regulated maximum the competition will soon pile back
in again.

to keep the competition out you have to keep your fares low forever

which is fine if your costs of operation really are low enough to support
that, but does mean that operating an unsustainably low fare to grab
market share doesn't work.

Except Uber is trying that.

I know

So your theory crashes in flames.

but as it hasn't got to the "lets put the fares up again" bit, how does,
where we are now prove that it will work?

There is a theory that its real MO is,

1) force out the competition

2) replace cars with self driving cars and put the fares up

But I don't believe that model will work either as:

a) I believe the date that driverless cars will be routinely available is 10
years beyond what the optimists think the date will be. (We have discussed
this before and you were in the same place as me), Uber can't survive that
long subsidising fares.

b) It will change the Uber business model from one of the owner-driver
financing the cars to Uber financing the cars, and I don't believe that the
financial markets will give Uber (FTAOD any one company, whoever they are)
the money to finance 100% of the world's taxi-cabs[1]. So there will still
be room for other companies to finance self-driving cabs and come into the
market and compete on a country by country basis. Uber does not own any of
the necessary IPR in self driving. There's nothing here that cannot be
replicated by someone else.

tim

[1] a finger in the air figure of about 250 trillion pounds, 400 times
Uber's current valuation

Woking to Heathrow
 

tim... wrote:


"Roland Perry" wrote in message
...
In message , at 12:15:44 on Sat, 1 Apr
2017, D A Stocks remarked:
I may well take another look at Uber when I make the reverse journey at
5.00 am on Monday morning: no more messing about with cash and and, if my
initial experience is anything to go by, nicer cars, nicer drivers and
cheaper. What's not to like?

The alleged exploitation of their workers, the implications for
proportionate corporation tax receipts flowing to the UK, and the
possibility that having captured the market they can hike their fares.

the one thing about the taxi trade is that they can't monopolies the market
through lower fares and then hike them when the competition pulls out

the barriers to entry for a taxi company are so low that if you take your
fares back up to the regulated maximum the competition will soon pile back
in again.

to keep the competition out you have to keep your fares low forever

which is fine if your costs of operation really are low enough to support
that, but does mean that operating an unsustainably low fare to grab market
share doesn't work.

History also shows that startups such as this are exceptional if they
succeed in the medium-long term, so what's your exit strategy if they pull
out of the Brighton market?

catch the bus

He's a user not an investor

And they aren't selling a unique product

This is just a generic observation of the venture capital funded world,
not a prediction about any particular company trading today.

The BBC opines: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-29653830

Careful, Recliner will be along soon to tell you you are an idiot

Huh? Why would I do that? I invest in many venture capital funds, and am
well aware that many startups fail. I've also long thought that many IT
companies are over-valued.

Woking to Heathrow
 

On 2017\04\01 14:59, Roland Perry wrote:
In message , at 14:38:22 on Sat,
1 Apr 2017, Theo remarked:
Staying on the train and getting off a Surbiton (if it
stops) then taking a taxi might be one way to avoid it.

Having lived in Surbiton at one time, getting from there to Heathrow by
road is a nightmare.

When I lived in Sutton I used the X26 (or I think it was called 726
then) to get to Heathrow. It wasn't a nightmare, so I think you're
massively exagerating.

Woking to Heathrow
 

"Arthur Conan Doyle" wrote in message
news:uk9vdc1iusv3qbo78opsvoja1ik1sljco1@None...
"D A Stocks" wrote:

if my initial experience is
anything to go by, nicer cars, nicer drivers and cheaper. What's not to
like?

I used Uber Lux for a ride across London recently. Very nice. Wondered if
the
driver was doing a little moonlighting with his employer's vehicle, but
that's
his business.

I'm not sure if the rules for Uber Lux are different, but my understanding
is that Uber drivers use their own vehicles.
--
DAS

Woking to Heathrow
 

On 01/04/2017 15:50, tim... wrote:


"Roland Perry" wrote in message
...
In message , at 14:36:46 on Sat, 1 Apr
2017, tim... remarked:
the one thing about the taxi trade is that they can't monopolies the
market through lower fares and then hike them when the competition
pulls out

the barriers to entry for a taxi company are so low that if you take
your fares back up to the regulated maximum the competition will soon
pile back in again.

to keep the competition out you have to keep your fares low forever

which is fine if your costs of operation really are low enough to
support that, but does mean that operating an unsustainably low fare
to grab market share doesn't work.

Except Uber is trying that.

I know

So your theory crashes in flames.

but as it hasn't got to the "lets put the fares up again" bit, how does,
where we are now prove that it will work?

There is a theory that its real MO is,

1) force out the competition

2) replace cars with self driving cars and put the fares up

But I don't believe that model will work either as:

a) I believe the date that driverless cars will be routinely available
is 10 years beyond what the optimists think the date will be. (We have
discussed this before and you were in the same place as me), Uber can't
survive that long subsidising fares.

A recent New Scientist article was discussing how you programme ethical
considerations into self-driving cars!


--
Graeme Wall
This account not read.

Woking to Heathrow
 

In message , at 15:50:48 on Sat, 1 Apr 2017,
tim... remarked:
the one thing about the taxi trade is that they can't monopolies the
market through lower fares and then hike them when the competition
pulls out

the barriers to entry for a taxi company are so low that if you take
your fares back up to the regulated maximum the competition will soon
pile back in again.

to keep the competition out you have to keep your fares low forever

which is fine if your costs of operation really are low enough to
support that, but does mean that operating an unsustainably low fare
to grab market share doesn't work.

Except Uber is trying that.

I know

So your theory crashes in flames.

but as it hasn't got to the "lets put the fares up again" bit, how
does, where we are now prove that it will work?

That's what the investors and the competition regulators do for a
living, predicting how it will all turn out.
--
Roland Perry

Woking to Heathrow
 

In message , at 16:35:29 on Sat, 1 Apr 2017,
Basil Jet remarked:

Staying on the train and getting off a Surbiton (if it
stops) then taking a taxi might be one way to avoid it.

Having lived in Surbiton at one time, getting from there to Heathrow by
road is a nightmare.

When I lived in Sutton I used the X26 (or I think it was called 726
then) to get to Heathrow. It wasn't a nightmare, so I think you're
massively exagerating.

Mr Google says by car a little over an hour on a Monday morning, for 12
miles. That's pretty nightmarish.
--
Roland Perry

Woking to Heathrow
 

"Recliner" wrote in message
...
tim... wrote:


"Roland Perry" wrote in message
...
In message , at 12:15:44 on Sat, 1 Apr
2017, D A Stocks remarked:
I may well take another look at Uber when I make the reverse journey at
5.00 am on Monday morning: no more messing about with cash and and, if
my
initial experience is anything to go by, nicer cars, nicer drivers and
cheaper. What's not to like?

The alleged exploitation of their workers, the implications for
proportionate corporation tax receipts flowing to the UK, and the
possibility that having captured the market they can hike their fares.

the one thing about the taxi trade is that they can't monopolies the
market
through lower fares and then hike them when the competition pulls out

the barriers to entry for a taxi company are so low that if you take your
fares back up to the regulated maximum the competition will soon pile
back
in again.

to keep the competition out you have to keep your fares low forever

which is fine if your costs of operation really are low enough to support
that, but does mean that operating an unsustainably low fare to grab
market
share doesn't work.

History also shows that startups such as this are exceptional if they
succeed in the medium-long term, so what's your exit strategy if they
pull
out of the Brighton market?

catch the bus

He's a user not an investor

And they aren't selling a unique product

This is just a generic observation of the venture capital funded world,
not a prediction about any particular company trading today.

The BBC opines: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-29653830

Careful, Recliner will be along soon to tell you you are an idiot

Huh? Why would I do that? I invest in many venture capital funds, and am
well aware that many startups fail. I've also long thought that many IT
companies are over-valued.

because that's what you did when I questioned the possibility that Uber
might fail in an earlier discussion

you used the spurious argument that some large company (Amazon was it) had
invested and they wouldn't be investing in a company that might fail.

On that basis you should hold the opinion that none of these billion dollar
companies can fail because it is 100% certain that all of them have the
backing of some large company or other

tim

Woking to Heathrow
 

"tim..." wrote in message
...


"Roland Perry" wrote in message
...


History also shows that startups such as this are exceptional if they
succeed in the medium-long term, so what's your exit strategy if they
pull out of the Brighton market?

catch the bus

He's a user not an investor

And they aren't selling a unique product

I will happily take a taxi that is there over one that I have to call up on
my 'phone, even if the fare is a bit more. However, when you find yourself
at the back of a 20 minute queue at the rank for a 5 minute journey it's
time to look for alternatives. If GTR and the licensed taxi operators banged
their heads together they could very easily sort this problem out at
Brighton but they don't show any sign of doing that.

I don't see why I should spend more money supporting a model that is totally
broken against a cheaper alternative that looks like it works rather well.

--
DAS

Woking to Heathrow
 

"D A Stocks" wrote in message
...
"Arthur Conan Doyle" wrote in message
news:uk9vdc1iusv3qbo78opsvoja1ik1sljco1@None...
"D A Stocks" wrote:

if my initial experience is
anything to go by, nicer cars, nicer drivers and cheaper. What's not to
like?

I used Uber Lux for a ride across London recently. Very nice. Wondered if
the
driver was doing a little moonlighting with his employer's vehicle, but
that's
his business.

I'm not sure if the rules for Uber Lux are different, but my understanding
is that Uber drivers use their own vehicles.

FSVO

The point about Uber's model is that they don't own them

but that doesn't mean that the driver does either - he could be "borrowing"
it

(FTAOD - I'm not making some pedantic point about Lease-Hire)

tim

Woking to Heathrow
 

"Roland Perry" wrote in message
...
In message , at 15:50:48 on Sat, 1 Apr 2017,
tim... remarked:
the one thing about the taxi trade is that they can't monopolies the
market through lower fares and then hike them when the competition pulls
out

the barriers to entry for a taxi company are so low that if you take
your fares back up to the regulated maximum the competition will soon
pile back in again.

to keep the competition out you have to keep your fares low forever

which is fine if your costs of operation really are low enough to
support that, but does mean that operating an unsustainably low fare to
grab market share doesn't work.

Except Uber is trying that.

I know

So your theory crashes in flames.

but as it hasn't got to the "lets put the fares up again" bit, how does,
where we are now prove that it will work?

That's what the investors

Yep, they are taking the risk along with Uber.

That doesn't mean that they are any more correct in a view that it will
succeed.

and the competition regulators do for a living, predicting how it will all
turn out.

They can only take pre-emptive action if considering a takeover in an
industry.

They can only act retrospectively if a monopolistic position obtained from a
commercial advantage has been abused.

They have no mechanism to say to a new entrant - sorry you can't price your
product under costs because it may force a competitor into bankruptcy

tim




--
Roland Perry

Woking to Heathrow
 

In article , (D A Stocks)
wrote:

"Arthur Conan Doyle" wrote in message
news:uk9vdc1iusv3qbo78opsvoja1ik1sljco1@None...
"D A Stocks" wrote:

if my initial experience is
anything to go by, nicer cars, nicer drivers and cheaper. What's not to
like?

I used Uber Lux for a ride across London recently. Very nice. Wondered
if the driver was doing a little moonlighting with his employer's
vehicle, but that's his business.

I'm not sure if the rules for Uber Lux are different, but my
understanding is that Uber drivers use their own vehicles.

In the UK? Hire car law would make that rather difficult, AIUI.

--
Colin Rosenstiel

Woking to Heathrow
 

In article , (tim...)
wrote:

"D A Stocks" wrote in message
...
"Arthur Conan Doyle" wrote in message
news:uk9vdc1iusv3qbo78opsvoja1ik1sljco1@None...
"D A Stocks" wrote:

if my initial experience is
anything to go by, nicer cars, nicer drivers and cheaper. What's not to
like?

I used Uber Lux for a ride across London recently. Very nice. Wondered
if the driver was doing a little moonlighting with his employer's
vehicle, but that's his business.

I'm not sure if the rules for Uber Lux are different, but my
understanding is that Uber drivers use their own vehicles.

FSVO

The point about Uber's model is that they don't own them

but that doesn't mean that the driver does either - he could be
"borrowing" it

(FTAOD - I'm not making some pedantic point about Lease-Hire)

In this country any hire car is subject to local authority licensing and
testing.

--
Colin Rosenstiel

Woking to Heathrow
 

On 2017\04\01 19:00, wrote:
In article , (D A Stocks)
wrote:

"Arthur Conan Doyle" wrote in message
news:uk9vdc1iusv3qbo78opsvoja1ik1sljco1@None...
"D A Stocks" wrote:

if my initial experience is
anything to go by, nicer cars, nicer drivers and cheaper. What's not to
like?

I used Uber Lux for a ride across London recently. Very nice. Wondered
if the driver was doing a little moonlighting with his employer's
vehicle, but that's his business.

I'm not sure if the rules for Uber Lux are different, but my
understanding is that Uber drivers use their own vehicles.

In the UK? Hire car law would make that rather difficult, AIUI.

What? Most "minicabs" (outside of certain brands like Addison Lee) use
owner drivers, and about half of London taxis have owner drivers.

Woking to Heathrow
 

On 01/04/2017 17:38, Graeme Wall wrote:

A recent New Scientist article was discussing how you programme ethical
considerations into self-driving cars!

Have they managed to figure out how to do that for runaway railway
trolleys approaching points yet?


--
Arthur Figgis Surrey, UK

Woking to Heathrow
 

On 01/04/2017 19:43, Arthur Figgis wrote:
On 01/04/2017 17:38, Graeme Wall wrote:

A recent New Scientist article was discussing how you programme ethical
considerations into self-driving cars!

Have they managed to figure out how to do that for runaway railway
trolleys approaching points yet?



That was quoted in the article.

--
Graeme Wall
This account not read.

Woking to Heathrow
 

tim... wrote:


"Recliner" wrote in message
...
tim... wrote:


"Roland Perry" wrote in message
...
In message , at 12:15:44 on Sat, 1 Apr
2017, D A Stocks remarked:
I may well take another look at Uber when I make the reverse journey at
5.00 am on Monday morning: no more messing about with cash and and, if
my
initial experience is anything to go by, nicer cars, nicer drivers and
cheaper. What's not to like?

The alleged exploitation of their workers, the implications for
proportionate corporation tax receipts flowing to the UK, and the
possibility that having captured the market they can hike their fares.

the one thing about the taxi trade is that they can't monopolies the
market
through lower fares and then hike them when the competition pulls out

the barriers to entry for a taxi company are so low that if you take your
fares back up to the regulated maximum the competition will soon pile
back
in again.

to keep the competition out you have to keep your fares low forever

which is fine if your costs of operation really are low enough to support
that, but does mean that operating an unsustainably low fare to grab
market
share doesn't work.

History also shows that startups such as this are exceptional if they
succeed in the medium-long term, so what's your exit strategy if they
pull
out of the Brighton market?

catch the bus

He's a user not an investor

And they aren't selling a unique product

This is just a generic observation of the venture capital funded world,
not a prediction about any particular company trading today.

The BBC opines: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-29653830

Careful, Recliner will be along soon to tell you you are an idiot

Huh? Why would I do that? I invest in many venture capital funds, and am
well aware that many startups fail. I've also long thought that many IT
companies are over-valued.

because that's what you did when I questioned the possibility that Uber
might fail in an earlier discussion

you used the spurious argument that some large company (Amazon was it) had
invested and they wouldn't be investing in a company that might fail.

No, it has the backing of large VC funds, which Amazon is not. Don't you
know the difference?

And I didn't discuss whether might one day fail to repay their investment.
What I pointed out was that losing lots of money at this stage in its life
was all part of the business plan, which its investors fully understood and
supported.

If you want an example of an over-hyped company with an absurd valuation,
which also loses money hand over fist, look at Tesla.


On that basis you should hold the opinion that none of these billion dollar
companies can fail because it is 100% certain that all of them have the
backing of some large company or other

No. It just means you don't understand the difference between trading
companies and investment funds.

Woking to Heathrow
 

tim... wrote:


"D A Stocks" wrote in message
...
"Arthur Conan Doyle" wrote in message
news:uk9vdc1iusv3qbo78opsvoja1ik1sljco1@None...
"D A Stocks" wrote:

if my initial experience is
anything to go by, nicer cars, nicer drivers and cheaper. What's not to
like?

I used Uber Lux for a ride across London recently. Very nice. Wondered if
the
driver was doing a little moonlighting with his employer's vehicle, but
that's
his business.

I'm not sure if the rules for Uber Lux are different, but my understanding
is that Uber drivers use their own vehicles.

FSVO

The point about Uber's model is that they don't own them

but that doesn't mean that the driver does either - he could be "borrowing"
it

(FTAOD - I'm not making some pedantic point about Lease-Hire)

The driver can't just turn up in a random borrowed vehicle. Uber must
approve, and knows exactly what car he drives. It presumably does some
checks on its ownership, suitability, whether it's licensed and insured for
private hire, etc.

https://www.uber.com/en-GB/drive/lon...-requirements/

Woking to Heathrow
 

Basil Jet wrote:
On 2017\04\01 19:00, wrote:
In article , (D A Stocks)
wrote:

"Arthur Conan Doyle" wrote in message
news:uk9vdc1iusv3qbo78opsvoja1ik1sljco1@None...
"D A Stocks" wrote:

if my initial experience is
anything to go by, nicer cars, nicer drivers and cheaper. What's not to
like?

I used Uber Lux for a ride across London recently. Very nice. Wondered
if the driver was doing a little moonlighting with his employer's
vehicle, but that's his business.

I'm not sure if the rules for Uber Lux are different, but my
understanding is that Uber drivers use their own vehicles.

In the UK? Hire car law would make that rather difficult, AIUI.

What? Most "minicabs" (outside of certain brands like Addison Lee) use
owner drivers, and about half of London taxis have owner drivers.

Most of the cars provided by my local mini cab firm are owned by the firm.
They're sometimes recently imported second-hand Japanese hybrid cars, with
Japanese-style controls, satnav, branding, etc. For example, once it was a
Toyota Estima, which would have been called a Previa if sold here.

Woking to Heathrow
 

In message , at 18:48:05 on Sat, 1 Apr 2017,
tim... remarked:
I'm not sure if the rules for Uber Lux are different, but my
understanding is that Uber drivers use their own vehicles.

FSVO

The point about Uber's model is that they don't own them

but that doesn't mean that the driver does either - he could be
"borrowing" it

See "and thus a lack of insurance".
--
Roland Perry

Woking to Heathrow
 

In message
-septe
mber.org, at 20:19:18 on Sat, 1 Apr 2017, Recliner
remarked:
The point about Uber's model is that they don't own them

but that doesn't mean that the driver does either - he could be "borrowing"
it

(FTAOD - I'm not making some pedantic point about Lease-Hire)

The driver can't just turn up in a random borrowed vehicle. Uber must
approve, and knows exactly what car he drives. It presumably does some
checks on its ownership, suitability, whether it's licensed and insured for
private hire, etc.

https://www.uber.com/en-GB/drive/lon...-requirements/

The main complaint is that they don't (do much checking). And reportedly
the problem with insurance is they don't track cancellations and
renewals.
--
Roland Perry

Woking to Heathrow
 

In message , at 13:23:28
on Sat, 1 Apr 2017, remarked:
I'm not sure if the rules for Uber Lux are different, but my
understanding is that Uber drivers use their own vehicles.

FSVO

The point about Uber's model is that they don't own them

but that doesn't mean that the driver does either - he could be
"borrowing" it

(FTAOD - I'm not making some pedantic point about Lease-Hire)

In this country any hire car is subject to local authority licensing and
testing.

Although reportedly TfL is overwhelmed by the number of Uber cars being
brought into the system, and may not be checking as thoroughly as they
could.
--
Roland Perry

Woking to Heathrow
 

Roland Perry wrote:
In message
-septe
mber.org, at 20:19:18 on Sat, 1 Apr 2017, Recliner
remarked:
The point about Uber's model is that they don't own them

but that doesn't mean that the driver does either - he could be "borrowing"
it

(FTAOD - I'm not making some pedantic point about Lease-Hire)

The driver can't just turn up in a random borrowed vehicle. Uber must
approve, and knows exactly what car he drives. It presumably does some
checks on its ownership, suitability, whether it's licensed and insured for
private hire, etc.

https://www.uber.com/en-GB/drive/lon...-requirements/

The main complaint is that they don't (do much checking). And reportedly
the problem with insurance is they don't track cancellations and
renewals.

Do you have a link for that?

I'm not sure if this applies in the UK:

Uber requires all of their drivers to have car insurance, and provides
supplemental insurance coverage, but only while the app is on.

Here’s how it works: When the Uber app is off, a driver is covered by their
own personal car insurance. When the Uber app is turned on, a low level of
liability insurance becomes active. When a trip is accepted, a higher level
of coverage kicks in and remains active until the passenger exits the
vehicle. Previously Uber had only offered coverage when a passenger was in
the car, but the company updated their policy after a series of accidents
which resulted in various lawsuits.

From
https://www.answerfinancial.com/insurance-center/how-does-car-insurance-work-for-uber-drivers

Also see
http://www.gocompare.com/taxi-insurance/uber-and-other-ride-sharing-apps/#2YBrm8moZhlIIt7v.97

Woking to Heathrow
 

In article , (Roland Perry)
wrote:

In message , at
13:23:28 on Sat, 1 Apr 2017, remarked:
I'm not sure if the rules for Uber Lux are different, but my
understanding is that Uber drivers use their own vehicles.

FSVO

The point about Uber's model is that they don't own them

but that doesn't mean that the driver does either - he could be
"borrowing" it

(FTAOD - I'm not making some pedantic point about Lease-Hire)

In this country any hire car is subject to local authority licensing and
testing.

Although reportedly TfL is overwhelmed by the number of Uber cars
being brought into the system, and may not be checking as thoroughly
as they could.

That may be the legislation in London, different from that in the rest of
the country, not being fit for purpose.

--
Colin Rosenstiel