Livin' La Vida Uber

[Limey]

I have a very short drive to work, less than 5 miles.  Today I took an Uber (because the missus needed my car while hers is in the shop) and, with 1.2x surge pricing in effect, it cost $10; so that's $8 on a non-surge day.  Still, let's say that's $20/day to/from work, 5 days a week, 4 weeks a month; that's $400/month in Uber charges for commuting.  I don't need to tell you what I pay a month for my German Penis Enhancer, but it's somewhat more than that.  Plus insurance, plus gas, plus maintenance, plus depreciation, plus ticket(s).

Outside of work, I rarely drive my car.  We Uber when we go out because of drinking and the fact that you cannot park anywhere now in Houston.  Even when going on client visits, I can ride with a colleague but, when going downtown, Uber is cheaper and easier than parking anyway.  I live in Montrose, which means I can walk to most of what I need (i.e. beer, tacos etc.).  Mrs Limey has a Land Rover that she has for her work (which is fully tax-deductible), so we have shopping trips and road trips covered.

The only time I see a slight issue is when I play golf: my club is in Sharpstown and getting an Uber back from there is a challenge as typically there aren't many around in the area .  But really that just means a slightly longer wait time than usual, which is easy to plan for.  Otherwise, when playing away from my club often will be far out of town, so a much longer ride there and back.

Am I missing anything?  I really am thinking of ditching the car, trousering the equity and livin' la vida Uber!

[drew corleone]

We have a friend that lives in downtown Houston. Someone stole his car from a valet lot about six months ago and he chose to not replace it, instead opting to Uber/rideshare everywhere, It may not be the same exact situation, but he's had zero complaints about not having a car.

[Limey]

We have a friend that lives in downtown Houston. Someone stole his car from a valet lot about six months ago and he chose to not replace it, instead opting to Uber/rideshare everywhere, It may not be the same exact situation, but he's had zero complaints about not having a car.

Good to know.  Thanks.

[Bench]

How many times have you moved in the last three years?

[Limey]

How many times have you moved in the last three years?

Three, but all inside the Loop.  Moving outside the Loop really isn't anything we've contemplated seriously.  The only time we've been outside the Loop is when we lived in the Manhattan lofts on Post Oak / Hidalgo, so only juuuust a bit outside.

We only moved so much as we were in rented accommodation while we found a new place to buy - which we now have.  So the moving has stopped...for now.

[Bench]

Three, but all inside the Loop.  Moving outside the Loop really isn't anything we've contemplated seriously.  The only time we've been outside the Loop is when we lived in the Manhattan lofts on Post Oak / Hidalgo, so only juuuust a bit outside.

"Yasser fucking Arafat, huh?  Never a night in the same place." (at 4:41)

[Limey]

Because I am old, and no longer with it (I still use Facebook FFS!), I have just become aware of Zipcar.  That settles it for me, as this removes the last remaining concern I had: what do I do if I really, really, really have to have a car?

Now, Zipcar won't work for road trips (it isn't meant to), but it will be great for short rentals (by the hour) and Enterprise can fill in the occasional weekender sans wife (because Enterprise will come and pick me up).

Mrs Limey's on board, and even suggested that - without my German Penis Enhancer taking up space in the garage - I can get a bike.  Believe it or not, I like this idea.

[BizidyDizidy]

Because I am old, and no longer with it (I still use Facebook FFS!), I have just become aware of Zipcar.  That settles it for me, as this removes the last remaining concern I had: what do I do if I really, really, really have to have a car?

Now, Zipcar won't work for road trips (it isn't meant to), but it will be great for short rentals (by the hour) and Enterprise can fill in the occasional weekender sans wife (because Enterprise will come and pick me up).

Mrs Limey's on board, and even suggested that - without my German Penis Enhancer taking up space in the garage - I can get a bike.  Believe it or not, I like this idea.

I've used zipcar for weekend trips many times, but it may only make sense because normal rental car pricing is also insane in Manhattan.

[Limey]

I've used zipcar for weekend trips many times, but it may only make sense because normal rental car pricing is also insane in Manhattan.

Does Zipcar work as advertised?

[BizidyDizidy]

Does Zipcar work as advertised?

I've had generally good experiences with it, yes. The only caveat I'd give (and this may be more of a NYC phenomenon), is the weekend is usually booked up somewhat in advance. I wouldn't assume you can decide you want to head somewhere Saturday and there will necessarily be a decent car available.

[Limey]

I've had generally good experiences with it, yes. The only caveat I'd give (and this may be more of a NYC phenomenon), is the weekend is usually booked up somewhat in advance. I wouldn't assume you can decide you want to head somewhere Saturday and there will necessarily be a decent car available.

Thanks!  I wondered if that happens.  I doubt there's the same demand down here as in NYC, but there's also fewer cars available to start with here.  However, in such cases, I expect I'll have the option to rent from Hertz etc. whereas I believe they sell out in NYC too.

[chuck]

I used to rent cars in NYC to drive upstate to ski. Then it occurred to me that it was cheaper to fly to Denver than to rent a car for the weekend. No joke.

[Limey]

I used to rent cars in NYC to drive upstate to ski. Then it occurred to me that it was cheaper to fly to Denver than to rent a car for the weekend. No joke.

Did you not still need a car in Denver?

[chuck]

Did you not still need a car in Denver?

Hell no. You take a shuttle from the airport to whatever resort you're visiting.

[BizidyDizidy]

Thanks!  I wondered if that happens.  I doubt there's the same demand down here as in NYC, but there's also fewer cars available to start with here.  However, in such cases, I expect I'll have the option to rent from Hertz etc. whereas I believe they sell out in NYC too.

You can cancel a couple days in advance, so you can hold one until you know for sure as well.

[Limey]

UPDATE:  Well, I sold the car just over a week ago.  So far, so good.

Uberring to/from work has been a pleasant, relaxing experience; i.e. the polar opposite of driving in Houston traffic.  The longest wait I've had was this morning, 11 minutes.  Usually it's been less than 5 and, at the office, my ride is often pulling up before I can get down in the lift.  What I need to do for the mornings is use the new advance scheduling feature to cut down on wait times - but that also means getting my shit together in a timely fashion in the mornings, which is not a strong suit of mine.

I'm learning not to be a control freak in the car so that, if the app take the driver on a  route I wouldn't normally use or the driver's in a lane I would normally avoid, I'm just letting it go.  Makes life much more serene.

With very limited data, I'm looking at a projection of about $500/month based on 1 week of commuting and work-related Ubers.  If that holds true as the data sample expands, I'll be very happy.

[Navin R Johnson]

Haven't used the scheduling feature yet, but plan on using it tomorrow morning to get me to the UH/OU game.  Anyone had luck with it?

Also curious, if you use it, does that eliminate the possibility of surge pricing?

[Limey]

Haven't used the scheduling feature yet, but plan on using it tomorrow morning to get me to the UH/OU game.  Anyone had luck with it?

Also curious, if you use it, does that eliminate the possibility of surge pricing?

I don't know about avoiding surge pricing (I suspect not), but I've now used the scheduling feature twice and it's worked well.  You can only schedule in 15-minute window increments, so for most rides in town it's going to be irrelevant.  However, when needing to leave for golf at 6:45am on a Sunday morning, it can't hurt to let Uber know in advance that you're going to want a car because they will be pretty scarce at that time.

I think where it will help truly is when there are longer wait times, either by demand or lack of cars.  Uber will know how the wait time is looking and call for your ride far enough in advance so that the car will arrive in the desired window.  It should take some of the guesswork out of getting that ride to a meeting or the airport.  I suspect I will need to use this to get home in the evenings during the holidays.

[Navin R Johnson]

Used it for the game, worked like a charm.  Scheduled 3 cars for 8:15-8:30.  2 showed up at or before 8:15, 1 showed up about 8:20.

[Navin R Johnson]

It was $15 each way, which was cheaper than parking and no worries about a DUI, which I would have well deserved after that game.

[Limey]

OK.  First problem encountered today.

I (stupidly) updated my iPhone based on internet reports that the "golden master" beta OS was stable as rock.  Well, it has bricked my iPhone (and many, many others, apparently) such that I need to plug in to iTunes in order to restore the phone to working order.  That would be my iTunes at home...I'm at work.

There's no way to call an Uber without a smart phone.

ETA:  Unless you go to m.uber.com, and then you can.  Whew!

[T. J.]

Do you tip your Uber driver?   I know you don't have to but there's a lot of talk out there about whether you should or not.

 Have you ever refused one of the rides that showed up?   I considered it last week in Hartford Connecticut after the driver showed up in an old beater. As it turned out my initial judgment was correct as he was a terrible driver and couldn't find my hotel. He had his phone sitting on the passenger seat where he couldn't see the GPS instructions.  We got into a traffic circle and I swear have never been in one before.  We circled twice before he got off on the wrong exit and ended up back on the freeway we had just exited.

(I didn't tip.)

[Ty in Tampa]

I tip my Uber drivers, unless they completely suck. And I always rate my driver. That is the best way to show your displeasure. My friend drives and she says anything less than a 4 star rating can keep you off of the road.

[Navin R Johnson]

I will tip once they add it to the app.