Uber drivers at CNS routinely cancelling rides to manipulate surge pricing

[Aussie_flyer]

At least it works well in MEL, they can't refuse you as you're already in the car with bag loaded before they know where you are going (at the uber rank)

 

[Pigg]

Let's be accurate here. We are not saying it is the cancellation that causes surging, but the act of accepting a ride to reduce supply, when you have no intention of delivering the service. Uber's website says "Surge pricing automatically goes into effect when there are more riders in a given area than available drivers." I don't know about you, but I would think that a driver that has accepted a ride then they are no longer available. Now, whether this causes a surge or not, clearly drivers are accepting and cancelling until the price goes up. They are starting to give Uber drivers the same reputation of the taxi drivers that facilitated Uber's rise in the first place.

All you have said is "it doesn't happen" - no evidence, no theory as to why drivers are cancelling. What is there motivation? Enough people have told you it happens at CNS but you want to deny it. You are typical of the occasional one issue wonders that come on this website in a poor PR attempt (last week we had someone defending a travel insurance company) and you will soon disappear.
In terms of me cancelling the occasional trip, I have explained a reason why. You only have a few minutes to cancel so normally I wouldn't inconvenience a driver too much. (In fact, those 15 minute waits are often because the driver is in the processing of finishing another trip so it makes no difference to them.) If Uber's algorithm worked better I wouldn't have to do it. Unlike drivers I can be penalised for inconveniencing them. A shame it doesn't go both ways.

It's also a shame that you still can't read. I have never said that "cancellations" don't happen as you implied, i said that cancellations don't cause a surge. I also told you the percentage of cancellations i receive per day, most of which are when i am already on my way to the rider so costing me time, money and wear and tear so stop surmising that you know how ut works. As for being a oe tie commenter on this forum, i have been a member for a long time but don't feel the need to comment on things that do not effect me unlike some of the factless, know it all grumps on here who ignore the actual facts to suit their own agenda. Cya, out of this thread till another comes along that i feel the need to comment on.

 

[Pigg]

This thread so motivates me to use public transport or the shuttles to and from airports where possible!!
If the behaviour of tax drivers deliberately cancelling rides is true, that is (criminally) distorting the market,
Personally I would be quite happy with the state based taxi boards banning taxi drivers from being rideshare drivers. Yes restraint of trade, but on the other hand how many hours a day should people be driving anyway for safety reason!!
If only we could tag the ACCC into this thread.

Interesting how several Cairns Uber drivers are creating AFF accounts to comment here's - which is totally fine and welcome to all. This topic must be trending outside of AFF

Welcome to AFF @AjMcN . Confirms my suspicion that there is coordination between some Uber drivers of operating apps.

Interesting how several Cairns Uber drivers are creating AFF accounts to comment here's - which is totally fine and welcome to all. This topic must be trending outside of AFF

Welcome to AFF @AjMcN . Confirms my suspicion that there is coordination between some Uber drivers of operating apps.

Some of us have been members for a long time, we just don't feel the need to comment on every subject. Most rideshare drivers don't even know any other drivers so your theory doesn't work on here the same as the false theory about cancellations causing a surge. If only the riders cancelling caused a surge i would be a much wealthier man! Au revoir, until my next comment on a subject that interests me.

 

[Pigg]

Hi I’m a Uber driver in cairns and we have our own group. It’s not the legit drivers it’s actually the taxi drivers, they all have two phones and accept a Uber ride only to cancel and they all do it together knowing that the customer will get upset and decide to go to the taxi rank which is now directly across the road.

I will admit that their are Uber drivers that do pretty much the same to try and create a surge for a larger fare. I have had some of them come up to me after I have dropped a passenger offf at the airport and have gone to the waiting area and ask me to turn my app off.

Cairns airport and Uber moved the waiting area and the pickup area so now for both waiting and pickup we are directly opposite each other and since then the surge tactic is even worse as so many of the one group know each other and work both Uber and taxi and have access to both.

Just recently most taxis in cairns have placed a sign on their vehicles saying No Surge Charges.

After 25 years as a GM for a very respectful company I drive to pass time while my partner is working and as I’ve travelled to 27 countries I love picking up tourists from all around the world.

Happy to discuss and open up all the honest drivers know.

The Uber app when we drop someone at the airport tells us how many Ubers are waiting in line before you, so often it will tell me 1-5 and there is 18 in the queue.

Regards

A

Thanks for the sensible comment, i'm a longstanding driver in Cairns also but certain posters on here are still taking me to task as they don't want to believe facts that don't fit their agenda. Just in case you didn't know. Us top drivers skip the airport queue so it doesn't matter how many are there waiting.

 

[Pigg]

Very often this week there has been a surge on in the city and none at the airport, this will happen more and more now the holiday/convention season is starting up. Is that because drivers are cancelling? No, it's because there are a limited number of drivers and taxis. Simple.

 

[markis10]

Thanks for the sensible comment, i'm a longstanding driver in Cairns also but certain posters on here are still taking me to task as they don't want to believe facts that don't fit their agenda. Just in case you didn't know. Us top drivers skip the airport queue so it doesn't matter how many are there waiting.

You could do well to follow the spirit and intentions of that post, your comments to me as a member of 20+ years don’t seem to be in the spirit of this site.

Most rideshare drivers don't even know any other drivers so your theory doesn't work on here

We won’t mention the Uber Cairns Drivers Facebook group then
Maybe you should try fixing the falsehoods on reddit that have been going for years on the same subject

https://www.reddit.com/r/Cairns/comments/1flwgk7/uber_drivers_wth

https://www.reddit.com/r/Cairns/comments/ywpbud/why_is_uber_so_crap_in_cairns_drivers_constantly

Uber in Cairns does have some redeeming features, I caught one from the Hilton to the airport on the day before Melbourne Cup in 2021 and the driver waxed lyrical about Verry Elegant, which I didn’t have in the frame for my bets, put $100 on which subsequently paid for my vacay the previous week in Cairns.

 

[Pigg]

You could do well to follow the spirit and intentions of that post, your comments to me as a member of 20+ years don’t seem to be in the spirit of this site.


We won’t mention the Uber Cairns Drivers Facebook group then
Maybe you should try fixing the falsehoods on reddit that have been going for years on the same subject

https://www.reddit.com/r/Cairns/comments/1flwgk7/uber_drivers_wth

https://www.reddit.com/r/Cairns/comments/ywpbud/why_is_uber_so_crap_in_cairns_drivers_constantly

Uber in Cairns does have some redeeming features, I caught one from the Hilton to the airport on the day before Melbourne Cup in 2021 and the driver waxed lyrical about Verry Elegant, which I didn’t have in the frame for my bets, put $100 on which subsequently paid for my vacay the previous week in Cairns.

I said "most" rideshare drivers don't know any other drivers, i hardly think a Facebook group of twenty five members out of hundreds of drivers puts my fact to rest eh? But thanks for confirming my thoughts on your own agenda, just because you've been a member of the group longer doesn't make you anymore right in your thoughts. Au revoir, got better things to do now.

 

[Rich]

. I have never said that "cancellations" don't happen as you implied

I never implied that at all. if you look at the context of my "never happens" comment:

All you have said is "it doesn't happen" - no evidence, no theory as to why drivers are cancelling

Clearly we are both saying cancellations happen. The question is for what purpose. I think we both know.

 

[kevrosmith]

Wasn’t a veteran member thrown out a few years ago for alleged felonious activities and seems to be more recently admitted again…? Always wondered what happened.

 

[RooFlyer]

Clearly we are both saying cancellations happen. The question is for what purpose.

I asked up thread those who were saying that cancellations are not to induce surge pricing why then we were experiencing so many cancellations when trying to get an Uber from Cairns Airport. I didn’t really see any reply to that but in one of the Reddit threads posted by @markis10 above there was quite a long list of reasonable reasons why Driver would cancel. But not all of them would apply particularly to Cairns Airport and most would apply to Uber in general.

Still like to know from those on this thread why they think this thread has come about, that there are so many people getting multiple cancellations at Cairns Airport. It doesn’t happen like this for instance at Hobart Airport or Adelaide Airport or Newcastle Airport.

 

[XWu]

Certainly this CNS thread generated more new member accounts than expected, compared to say, the situation of travel i and out of MEL, where predominantly speculation is organised behaviour rather than individual drivers making their own decision to cancel, whatever reasons, but the concentration and duration of this does not make it a coincidence

 

[docjames]

Two data points today from the GC, around 10min trips - first mid morning and second d late afternoon (return of the first?.

Uber X - estimate 9 min, confirm clicked, now 15min with a drop off to do first. Saw five (empty!) Ubers travel past where we were waiting. Perhaps they weren’t X?

Uber X - 9 min estimate. Confirmed. Now 1 min (!), had to almost run to the pickup point.

 

[clifford]

Still like to know from those on this thread why they think this thread has come about, that there are so many people getting multiple cancellations at Cairns Airport. It doesn’t happen like this for instance at Hobart Airport or Adelaide Airport or Newcastle Airport.

I've had a similar experience at LST, when trying to get to Longford, after arriving on the last QF flight of the day (around 21:00). Took a cab in the end, as the Uber quotes were getting very silly.

 

[Quickstatus]

Certainly this CNS thread generated more new member accounts than expected

It is odd, as new member accounts generally come on with a story/experience/question. The new member accounts came here specifically to defend one position. Is this thread trending in other forums

 

[jastel]

Given uber is a mobile app I dont see how the taxi company can stop drivers taking and/or cancelling uber jobs on their personal phone?

FYI Taxis have been on Uber in NSW for almost a year: Welcoming taxis onto Uber in NSW: an update to our vehicle eligibility requirements

Very Easily - The same way any private company can...they switch them OFF (withdraw their way of getting work) for a breach of the service contract the driver signed. This can and has been done for multiple reasons. Then they wont be Taxi drivers anymore.

If as stated on here, the surge CANT be manipulated by Uber drivers, how can "Taxi" drivers do it?

FYI - see Post 126

 

[Aeryn]

My hypothesis wasn't about surges but rather about the high number of Uber cancellations experienced at CNS.

If Taxi drivers are accepting jobs for their private vehicle on their mobile but are actually sitting in a taxi at the airport so then cancel, it could be a strategy that hopes multiple cancellations might frustrate waiting passengers enough to give up on uber and walk back to their waiting taxi at the taxi stand.

FYI increases of $1-2 isnt a surge, prices fluctuate slightly due to demand, but an actual surge is what you see after concerts or major PT disruption and is at least a doubling of the usual fair.

Also for the Taxi company to take any action they would have to know this is what a driver i doing, unless they are illegally tapping their mobile they cant know.

 

[jastel]

That Reddit thing told you the reasons for cancellations...reasons are the same for Taxis and Ubers.
One mistake in that is most Taxi jobs do not know the destination either.

I get your theory - but if Uber are dumb enough to have a system, where anybody that has signed up to be a driver at some point can log in and affect it, despite not being in a vehicle and "working", well...people may take advantage of it.
What's to stop the gardener at the Airport doing the same thing, or the Cafe waitress etc..maybe their partner is driving and needs a surge.

Surge, most people would agree, being a higher price than normal...not doubling...that is called price gouging, extortion, a ripoff.....

If the Taxi driver or gardner, is doing what you claim, they have to cancel as they have no way of actually picking the people up. The good news is that real or pretend drivers cancelling, wont start a surge according to the uber drivers on here so why bother doing it at all?

IF the theory is true, and accepting a job then cancelling it makes a surge, why does it not happen in the city area or suburbs?

Maybe what happens is Uber knows the plane has landed via the web and a few minutes later the algorithm starts a small surge, designed to lure more cars there.???
Seems like this could all be solved by not surging prices.

If people want to wait longer and pay more rather than take an alternate means of transport that is already there, they are allowed to.

Cairns Taxis is not ASIO but they do track the Taxi Vehicle...not the phone.

 

[VPS]

Wow this thread has gone downhill - newbies posting the same comment several times

 

[NoName]

I’d love to know how the Uber drivers on this thread could possibly know with any certainty that cancelling does or does not create a surge. “Cancelling does not create a surge” “end of story” etc. Such definitive statements! Personally I have no idea either way but I am 100% sure a guy driving an Uber around the streets of Cairns does not have access to the Uber pricing algorithm. Or the technical skill to interpret it even if they did.

 

[NM]

I’d love to know how the Uber drivers on this thread could possibly know with any certainty that cancelling does or does not create a surge. “Cancelling does not create a surge” “end of story” etc. Such definitive statements! Personally I have no idea either way but I am 100% sure a guy driving an Uber around the streets of Cairns does not have access to the Uber pricing algorithm. Or the technical skill to interpret it even if they did.

I think it is partly explained by how we define the term "surge". While Uber may have a specific definition, my original use of the term was related to an increasing quoted price for the same trip. "Surge" or "price increase" terminology is irrelevant from my (the customer's) perspective,.

And I have not seen any evidence to counter my experience that Uber drivers cancelling the first arriving passenger's trips seems to result in their rebooking taking place at a slightly later time when more passengers arriving on the same flight are now also looking to make bookings. So the cancellations would appear to consolidate the demand into a narrower time window, instead of a wider window spread, for which my observation is the the narrower demand window (more concurrent bookings) is noted by the Uber quoting system as increasing demand and hence increasing quoted pricing.

While it may not technically meet Uber's definition of a surge, the cancellation of first bookings after a flight arrival does appear to me to consolidate more "demand" into a narrower window and that, in my experience, can cause the Uber trip quoting system to present increased trip quotes to all passengers making bookings during that artificially narrowed booking window.