I'm sure you have heard all the fuss about a new ride-sharing service called Uber. The gist of it is that Uber uses Average Joe drivers that have cleared their background checks and hooks them up with folks that need rides to and fro via their smartphone app.
Now, the “drivers” could be anyone, really. A college student, a stay-at-home mom, or retired Uncle John who wants to earn a little side cash. Uber requires that the driver pass their background check and their car be in excellent condition (year 2005+). There are also professional drivers in the mix as well.
Why use Uber?
Good question. Right now the service is available in most of the major metropolitan cities in the US and they've started expanding into other large cities around the globe.
Let's say you've just landed in New York and you don't know a soul. You could dial up a driver and have someone at your beckon call within minutes. Fees vary by the distance you want to travel – but they are very price competitive to taxi services.
I haven't used the service yet (I want to try it for a Part 2 follow-up to this post), but when I tried accessing a driver on my smartphone, it told me that I could have a driver at my front door within 4 minutes. Not bad for suburb dwelling.
As more and more buy into this ride-sharing idea/service, I think fees could come down even more and be a win-win for all involved. You could save on gas, pollution and wear/tear of your car.
How to register
So, here's a quick video of registering for Uber online using your laptop/desktop computer. It's also very easy to sign-up on your smartphone. You'll just need to confirm registration via text or email.
Have you tried Uber? And, what's been your experience with it. Is it fairly affordable?
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