The Obscene Cost of Waiting for an Uber Rider

Posted by John Smith on August 9th, 2016

Time should be managed effectively by the Uber driver (Uber Partner). That is the reason Uber ride fares are determined by trip time as well as mileage. Sometimes it is Uber drivers who want to stay off the road to do something else with their time. Other times, it is a Uber rider who places less value on the driver’s time. Before now, Uber Partners and drivers were supposed to give passengers a 5 minute waiting grace – a time that many passengers extend and take rude advantage of. Now, Uber has reduced this time to two minutes.
 
What is the Difference?

There is one thing that has changed, and that is why there is a difference in the waiting time. I stand to be corrected when I think the major thing that has changed or improved is Uber’s understanding of the need to protect the Uber driver’s interest. There are many out there who believe that Uber cares very little about what happens to drivers. This step by Uber clearly disproves that specific claim and shows a conscious decision by Uber to revamp the Uber Business Model.
 
What This Means for Drivers

Indirectly, it translates into more money for Uber drivers (see our post – how much do uber drivers make?). The reason is that, if an Uber rider chooses to waste time in getting the ride started, it is their fault and should be treated as such. Before now, it seemed like drivers had to share the impact of time mismanagement by the Uber Rider, but now, things have changed and for every second past two minutes after arrival, drivers get paid. This means that when a passenger says: “you’d have to wait for a while I got to pick something”, you can nicely say: “no problem ma’am take all the time you need”, since you know you get paid for the delay.
 
What this Means for Passengers

This is Uber’s way of giving passengers an incentive to be quicker when an Uber driver is waiting. This has really been a problem that drivers never got to complain about since it seemed like a small issue. Now that it is being addressed, the driver’s experience can get better. Passengers now have a reason to never waste their time unnecessarily. Generally, this new act will shape passengers’ behavior and make those who used to find it easy wasting people’s time pay for their ‘indiscretion’.
 
My Take

I feel like it’s an indication that Uber has started looking more into driver related solutions that could improve drivers’ experience. It may soften the ‘Uber does not care about drivers’ rant that is fast becoming popular, if they continue to make improvements in that direction.

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About the team

Founded in 2014 by Malik Akande, a former Accenture employee, the Uberkit team is dedicated to aiding uber drivers and uber partners maximize their profits and ROI. The “Own an Uber black fleet kit” and “Grow your UberX Business Kit” was designed and developed primarily by Malik Akande for uber entrepreneurs looking to start/grow their uber business.
-by Ola John and Edited by Kunle Bowale.