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Surge drives business away

581 Views 10 Replies 6 Participants Last post by  wallae
In my neighborhood, there are many alternatives to Uber and Lyft. There are lots of idle taxis and large airport shuttle buses. All the Uber surge does is drive potential customers to other modes of transportation. I see it every day. My "spot" is near the Hyatt Regency in Kaanapali on Maui. I have Uber-x turned off and only do XL. And when there's no surge the customer's fare to our airport is very close to $100. Of that I get about $72. As soon as a surge raises its ugly head I see taxis rolling toward any of the many hotels in Kaanapali. We have several. A Hyatt, a Hyatt time share, a Westin, the Aii, a Marriott time share, the Kaanapali Beach Hotel, the Sheraton and the Royal Lahaina all very close to each other. I'm out there driving most days, usually seven days a week and only ONCE have I recieved a ride request during a surge. I've been driving for over a year now. If Uber continues to drive our potential customers to other conveyances I'll need to find something else to do. I also drive for Lyft and quite often I'll get a good hit on a Lyft ride when Uber has a surge going on. I prefer Uber because it pays more and it also allows me to be XL only but I can decline short Lyft non-XLs with no penalty to my 5.0 driver rating.
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ive driven through many and never get a ping. usually by baldwin beach park. i usually catch the surge then move to an area not surging (airport) and get a ping to collect the surge. thats the advantage of the new surge....the only advantage. if i was in kaanapali id catch the surge then go to lahaina to get a ping or north a bit, just out of the surge. kaanapali is usually flooded with drivers. i never stay there unless i like waiting.
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I do pretty well with an XL rig in Kaanapali when there's no surge. I get fewer rides than I would with x turned on but they are far more lucrative. 4 or 5 rides a day and I'm good if they're long ones.
I hear that! one select ride from airport to kaanapali or ritz and ive made my minimum for the day! those days i cherish and keep going ?
I believe it's the opposite. Fewer when X is off. I get very few pings when I'm select only.
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