Read all about it here.
Whoops, maybe not. What happened?
Well then, read all about it here, below.
Poor Sandra! Poor Kristy!
[UPDATE, APRIL 30, 2013: Pulled. Come back May 1 for details, if you want.]
[UPDATE, May 1, 2013: Oh, you're back! Well, you know, the same basic info has been posted here by SideCar and it pays off on the headline of cars getting impounded. So I guess that's that, for now. Thank you, drive through,]
Whoa, baby!
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And they have illegal taxis too, just as San Francisco! ‘Cept instead of calling them Lyft or whathaveyou, the Japanese refer to illegal cabs as shiroi takushi (white taxis) owing to the concomitant non-commercial white license plates.
Anyway, they’re all over the place out on the streets, not just bottled up at the airport, that’s my point.
Oh, and if the local police in Japan found out that you were still operating AFTER receiving a cease and desist notice, well, they just might impound your ride (AND your whimsical novelty pink mustache) and then lock you up for 20-something days, you know, to teach you a lesson. Oh, you want to call your family to tell them where you are, or your boss to explain your absence, or a lawyer to get sprung? Well fine, just sign this complete confession first. I’m srsly. Whatever you do, don’t “disrupt” in Japan, Lyfters.
Anyway, legal taxis are all over the place in Japan, that’s my point.
Let’s see here, the right hand is holding an electronic device, you know, the better to Lyft with.
And the left hand, well that’s acting as a cup holder for a beverage.
That means that some Lyft drivers steer with their knees.
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Hey Lyft! Why don’t you tell your taxi drivers to not violate VC 23123, you know, like every fucking minute of every fucking day they’re on the clock?
Oh you do?
But enforcing the law isn’t your job.
Hey, I know, why don’t you mount cameras on your taxis, you know, the way the SFMTA does with its vehicles?
How about a GoPro facing forward and another one mounted aimed towards the driver, so that he won’t be attempted to break any laws?
The “sharing economy” demands it, I’d say.
Isn’t this refreshing?
Thys is the fyrst tyme Y’ve seen a Lyft taxy dryver alone in his/her ryde NOT surfying the web and dryving symultaneously:
All the other times, the drivers have been illegally driving while texting or talking
Hey, isn’t that behavior illygal or something?
In California, anyway…
I’ll have to get a closer look next time:
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Turns out that San Francisco’s cab system is more akin to “Crazy Taxi 3 WestCoast (San Francisco)” than not.
See if you agree after perusing this lengthy bit from transportation writer Zusha Elinson
Hey, it’s the video game version of Levi’s Plaza. Check it.
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And I’ll tell you, the reason why your cabbie doesn’t want to take you way the Heck out there to the West Side in the Richmond District or the Sunset District is that if s/he does then s/he will have less cash in his/her pocket at the end of the shift.
Probably.
Like $3 or $5 or $10 less.
Oh well.
It’s like if you’re a “chicken and water” customer at a restaurant, you dig? You and your three buds look down at the menu and spot the cheapest entree (chicken, at the one chain I’m thinking about) and then the cheapest “drink” (water, natch). You all are just as much trouble for the waitress as regular customers* and yet at the end of her shift, she’s walking home with $10 or $20 or $30 less than she would if she had had more typical customers plus she may very well get chided by her supe for not trying hard enough to “upsell” and whatnot.
So that’s why hacks generally don’t want to take you to 46th and Ortega. ‘Specially when the City is hopping.
*Or more, as chicken and water people have a reputation of being more demanding than average.
Uh, to make more money?
From Ellen Huet comes the news of SideCar doubling its “voluntary” fares for New Years Eve 2013.
So that means you’ll need to pay double to avoid getting blackballed by SideCar’s drivers.
Of course, if a trained and licensed San Francisco taxi driver charges you double a during busy time, that’s a misdemeanor.
But if a SideCar driver jacks up rates on NYE, that’s called bidness.
Oh well.
Hey, Gentle Reader! Why not check in on SideCar’s “amazing year,” below? You’ll be able to see if any mention is made of CPUC case #PSG-3360, you know, that whole “cease and desist” thing.
If only this woman on Market had a SideCar sign instead of a TAXI sign:
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“Hello San Francisco SideCar Community!
2012 has been an amazing year:
Woohoo!
To ring in 2013, plenty of drivers in our community have told us that they plan to get behind the wheel on New Year’s Eve so that you can hit the town safely without having to worry about driving. <3 To thank them, we decided to do them a huge favor:
For New Year’s Eve only – and in The San Francisco Bay Area Only - from 5pm-5am, as a way of saying thanks to those driving on NYE, we are going to suggest double the community average donation for each ride within the app. This means that a ride with a typical community average of $10 will say $20 on Monday night.
Here’s why we’re doing this:
Of course, with SideCar what you donate is always up to you, and the community average is just there to help you decide. We just feel that on a night like New Year’s a little extra for drivers wouldn’t hurt. We hope you’ll feel the same way.”
Ooh, here’s one:
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See?
(It seems that most large luxury sedans in San Francisco have handicapped placards, the better to park you with, dear.)
And check it out, “Lyft drivers make $20+ per hour,” per a recent ad.
See?
So, Lyft drivers are making $20/hr+ after paying for their expenses? Mmmmm…
Something doesn’t wash here, IMO.
This woman standing at a bus stop in the Financh on Market Street outbound had a few choices, I suppose.
She could have tried hailing an illegal Lyft or Side Car jitney taxi (called shiroi takushii* in Japan) but this was a busy, rainy night so that wouldn’t have worked.
And the illegal Town Car Limos, well, they would have quoted her $50 for a ten-minute ride.
And MUNI – come on MUNI would have worked, eventually, but it would have taken a long, long time.
And a bike, well that was how I did it, but, you know, it was raining ‘n stuff.
So, she she whipped out her home-made visual aid, the poor dear.
Hey lady, look! That taxi’s “TAXI” light is on!** That means that this cab is empty** so the driver will totally pick you up** for sure!
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Did that taxi stop for her?
No not all.
But, nevertheless, carrying around a sign like this seems like a good idea. It probably gives her an edge.
Thank you, drive through.
*”White taxi.” Believe it or not, most private vehicles in Japan have white paint (it’s like 50-something percent, or maybe that percentage is a bit lower these days but anyway), so if some unlicensed dude will drive you around in his car for money, then you call his car a white taxi. You know, as opposed to a yellow taxi*** what has permits and a color scheme and a flag drop and a meter and all the other stuff that Lyft and Side Car don’t have…
**That light is meaningless in the 415. Sorry. Yes, I know, I know, where you’re from, the light means that the driver is looking for fares but that system is not in effect here.
***Which, of course, need not be yellow IRL.
Via Monika Bauerlein comes this take-down of Uber Cab, and Lyft and Side Car and the like as well, I suppose.
A quote of a quote:
Matt Kochman… served as Uber’s founding general manager in New York before he left last year. Kochman left Uber to do consulting for transportation brands and startups, fed up with Uber’s irreverent attitude toward regulators. “Discounting the rules and regulations as a whole, just because you want to launch a product and you have a certain vision for things, that’s just irresponsible,” Kochman said.
Yep, pretty much.
