Team-BHP - Has your Uber & Ola usage pattern changed in the last 2

Voted Yes.

Same reason as outlined by others earlier. In last 3 years used Ola/Uber cabs 4-5 times. For errands within 3-5 KM radius where parking might be a hassle, we just hail an auto or use Uber auto. Between Uber and Ola, Ola is way more expensive. Feels like daylight robbery now.

Currently in Pune on a 2 week trip. When not using our car, just hail an auto or Uber auto.

For short duration outstation trips by air, take my car and park at the airport. For longer duration, take BMTC Volvo Airport bus or book cabs through Savaari.

Voted for yes.

Quoting myself from another thread published 2 years ago titled "vehicle sales stagnant", where my views were against the motion.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tucker48 (Post 5040000)

And with better infrastructure and parking places which are coming up in numerous places, people will prefer to use personal cars instead of Ola/Uber. I don't remember when was the last time I saw one good clean example.
Also the scrappage policy will also show its effects.

Voted yes.
As stated by many friends above, extremely poor service. For example, I booked a cab for my wife from New Gurgaon (sector 90) to Dwarka. Driver did not reach our place in time and did not pick the call. It was already getting late and I was desperate. Ultimately, I booked a Blue Electric. I am hearing very good feedback about Blue electric from many friends and family.

Otherwise, as well, the service quality has become extremely poor. So I drive to places on my own if I know parking is good. These days though I love to travel by Delhi Metro. Metro is much more convenient and hassle free that it's a boon. For last mile, you can use a E-rickshaw or CNG autos.

Phase 1: Around 2015-16, use Uber/Ola for almost everything. I was a launch customer for Uber in Chennai. Got a swanky Mercedes E class for a 20 KM ride and didn't pay dime.

Phase 2: Around 2018-19, Cabs start deteriorating, started to use them for only airport pick up and drops. By now I have racked up more than 300 Uber rides.

Phase 3: Post covid, things have fallen off a cliff. Absolute detest using cabs. I am happy paying Rs 2000 at Bangalore airport for parking than using Uber/Ola. Last couple of trips, I tried Blusmart which is great. Satisfaction of riding in an EV is a plus.

I am glad that I have the oppurtunity to avoid Uber and Ola completely.

On another note, I do see local players also become tech savvy and provide a good service. Redtaxi is a service in coimbatore which is synonymous with good quality over many years. Their app works, no problem paying online. So definitely this space can be executed well but Uber and Ola have failed. Looking forward to the next generative of startups in this area to push Uber and Ola to the bin.

Post pandemic I have severely reduced Ola/Uber usage, I have used it less than 10 times in over 3.5 months. This is due to a few reasons.

1. Due to me being in an out of state hostel until last month most if not all my Ola/Uber usage this year was there and that to only when returning back to the campus as a last resort when it was too late to take the bus so it was used rarely.

2. I got my two-wheeler license in December and ever since I moved back home I've had my mothers old and now (mostly) restored 2007 Activa that still runs like a charm.

3. I have a metro station near my house that is 3 minutes by bike/scooter and 15 minutes by walk so I just use that if the place I need to go is far and has metro connectivity.

4. I'm one of the weird people that likes traffic so I find it fun to ride that tiny first gen Activa around Bangalore.

Yes. Primary reason being negotiations with the driver for drop location, fare etc. One of the main reasons why I chose Ola/Uber was to avoid haggling. I normally resort to Ola/Uber while traveling outside Visakhapatnam, and the experience has been abysmal. I have felt that the experience varies greatly depending on the city. Mumbai and Bangalore have it better, probably because of the large number of competing drivers. The wait times were low and there was no need for haggling even with short distance rides and payment through the app. Chennai and Visakhapatnam are a completely different ball game, I have had to wait for an hour from both these cities on arrival at the airport, as the drivers would not bother to come to the pickup location when they realise that the payment is not by cash. I now resort to prepaid taxis directly from the airport at these cities.

In a way, I believe the whole purpose of why I began using Ola/Uber has been defeated. Having been in Chennai from 2013 to 2017, I used to avoid travelling by Auto at all costs as they would charge exhorbitant rates for short distances and I would often have to abide due to lack of other options. However, the arrival of Uber/Ola was welcome as I could travel the same distance at a lower fare and in much better comfort. All these traits have now been lost with Ola/Uber.

Yes, I have almost stopped using Ola and Uber since the last couple of years.

Between about 2015 to 2019, I was a very heavy user of Ola and Uber for both work and personal uses. So much so that my personal car hardly saw any usage while I was racking up bills of more than 12K a month on Ola/Uber. Prices were reasonable, cabs aplenty and fairly well maintained. It was much more convenient than to drive or hire a chauffeur.

However now the situation has reversed. Cab availablity is suspect. Cancellations are very common. Not a reliable means if there's a time bound travel plan, which is basically all my travel. When when cabs do arrive they are filthy. AC rarely is turned on. Drivers are terrible and often unsafe.To top it all, the fares are now extremely high. It just doesn't make sense to use these services.

Airport rides are now usually a pre-booked Meru or local cab agency. I experimented with DriveU and now settled on a permanent driver. Had to change cars because my car wasn't backseat friendly.

Net net, commuting in 2023 has become far more expensive for me as compared to the golden years before 2019. There's however little option available.

PS After years of being driven around in Ola/Uber, I realised that I just can't self drive during work hours. Self drive involves wasting 2-3 hours a day which I can use for finishing work. I tend to get distracted on calls whilst driving. I'm often tired and irritated by the time i reach meetings. I even ended up falling asleep at the wheel once when stuck in a long traffic jam. I have taken a decision to avoid driving for work to the extent possible.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DigitalOne (Post 5530125)

I know this but in scenarios where the "cash" mode payments are higher during a week, how does Ola/Uber make money? Many people that I know of pay using cash only (or direct UPI payment to driver). My personal experience is that cancellations are lower if the driver knows that payment is via cash.

Uber/Ola have details of pick-up/drop-off locations of all rides made during the day. During the monthly payment cycle, they add their commission on cash rides as well and reduce the total payout to the driver.

The only time this doesn't work is when the driver stops the ride early after you enter the vehicle and asks you to pay whatever was shown in the app when you booked. In such cases, the driver pockets the entire amount as it becomes a fully offline transaction.

Voted yes
It’s not just poor quality of service, it’s more about reliability
My wife and infant baby were left stranded for over 2 hrs because of non stop cancellation by both Ola and Uber
I have shifted to local /Tourist taxi services
Better service and reliable though they charge almost the double of Ola/ Uber
Have also tried services of apps like driver bulao but not always reliable and i not able to trust my car with unknow drivers

Voted yes!

Post pandemic, reduced considerably - few trips during late nights at work, when I'm too tired to drive myself and the public transports have closed for the day.
Now my uber/ola is exclusively only for pick-up or drop to/from the nearest metro station in case of extreme weather; else I walk.

1) Public Infrastructure - Hyderabad has a decent public transport system now. The metro is well maintained with AC and my office provides a shuttle service from the metro station to the office building - Uber/Ola very rarely turn on the AC, even when asked
2) Ride cost - Costs me Rs.45 + 10 min walk (or Rs.20 Uber bike) to the metro station to reach office vs. Rs. 2-300 by Uber (prices vary as per surge pricing and the final amount is usually very far off from what was initially displayed at the time of booking)
3) Car quality - 99% of the time, I get a CNG S-Presso, which rattles like hell and has worse ride comfort than an auto. If I cancel, I'm charged a cancellation fee. I would much rather go in an Uber Auto which costs 1/3rd of the S-Presso price.
4) Cancellations and timing - Booking screen rotates for a good 30 mins before anyone accepts. Luckily now they know the approx. location and mode of payment at the time of booking, so cancellations have reduced. Drivers now use any and all means to increase the fare or pocket more for themselves
a) forcing UPI/cash payment - I get points and cashback on my credit cards, paying by UPI is usually my last resort
b) stopping the ride early and logging out of the app - they ask me to pay a round figure close to what I had at the time of booking; I guess they don't get charged commissions if they do this
c) Intentionally filling up CNG (very few bunks in Hyderabad have CNG, resulting in long wait queues) - this increases the ride time and I'm levied a 'penalty' because the ride took longer than what Uber had originally calculated

I'm unable to recollect more examples, but other than bike, I don't have any bookings in my app in 2023.

I used to use Uber a lot - mostly to commute to and fro office with a lot of the areas dug around my office. The last time I used a lot of Uber was out of compulsion because my dad was hospitalized and I was doing night duty at the hospital for 13 days at a stretch; the valet parking in the hospital was 400 rupees an hour! So I'd just uber it to and fro. Except that, I pretty much have stopped using the service - mostly because the cars are in terrible shape. Although I have to say on one recent occasion during the hospital run, I got a Ciaz which was in great shape ; else they were mostly Xcents or Dzires in various states of decay.