in the past I have posted about uber drivers who have been victims of drunk,drugged up or just obnoxious passengers. here is an example of why uber is a two way street when it comes to trust and safety.
http://www.delmarvanow.com/story/news/local/delaware/2017/02/16/uber-driver-burglary-crime/98011854/
this story is from australia but also involves an uber driver.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-02-15/sydney-uber-driver-found-guilty-of-rape-of-passenger/8274082
Our friend’s college grad S drove Uber in CA until he found out his employer had a strict policy against any employees having outside jobs, including Uber. The S said it earned him extra money on weekends and he enjoyed it but didn’t want to risk his full time job so stopped the moonlighting.
To me, driving is fraught with risks and I’m not convinced how well drivers are vetted with Uber or Lyft or similar.
Yeah I think driving random people is like Russian Roulette but for the passengers it can be risky too.
I’m a journalist and wrote a story a year ago about how many Uber and Lyft drivers are over the age of 50. One-quarter of Uber drivers are over 50. Some are doing it for extra cash during retirement, others because they lost their jobs or retired too soon and need the money to survive. A couple drivers I interviewed drove because they like meeting new people and love to drive.
FWIW I’ve had better experiences with Uber drivers than taxis.
The drivers can also ne as young as 18, I’ve read.
My S1’s best friend just signed up to drive for Uber. He’s a great kid who just hasn’t quite found his way yet and he seems to like it so far. I’ve only used it two times and both were great. One guy had his dog in the car. He was waiting for his son to finish football practice and decided to make a little money while he waited. I should probably point out that we live in a low-crime, low-stress area.
Almost all of the Lyft and Uber drivers I experienced in the NYC area are immigrants, mostly from Africa. They like to tell me about their countries and their governments. They are very interesting people.
I told a driver from Senegal that most of the Africans I encountered in France and Italy are from Senegal and he said one Senegalese working overseas usually supports 7 people back home. I asked him who he supported and he said he had a wife and kids. Then he said it had been 15 years since he was back home and I asked him “Why? Don’t you miss your wife and kids”? He sheepishly responded that he also has a wife here in the US and he added, “We Muslims are allowed several wives!”
We both had a good laugh about that.
A lot of young people in the business drive Uber. Entry level or even mid level jobs don’t pay a lot and they have to maintain an image.
Hertz rents cars to people so they can be lyft drivers. I have very mixed feelings about this.
I simply hate taking taxies when I am in NYC or Boston. I have felt completely trapped in a Taxi in Boston that had a cage and left so little room that I cut my ankle getting in. I am 5’3. I find that I usually end up with nausea as
they slam on the brakes so often. (the only time I managed to make a taxi driver drive “nice” is when S was sick and
I told him he would vomit in his nice new car (I did have a ziplock bag just in case) (and we simply could not cancel). I was a nice calm drive to the airport.
We have not yet used Uber or Lyft but D does often. We will be visiting both in Boston and San Diego
in March and will find out there how we like it.
We love uber! When the girls use it I can track who they are riding with and when they get there. One of our uber drivers in San Francisco was an mit grad, driving only during surge pricing times and really cleaning up. He said it helped pay for his 5k 1 bedroom apt.
If you’re worried or frightened, OP, why not just say it, rather than a link about a crime in Delaware? 15 min later, Australia. Why not just ask our experiences?
My D2 drove for uber, in Boston. In college, they used it for a designated driver. Still use it.
^^^^I am not afraid,(not sure how you drew that conclusion from the post)
here is my original post"in the past I have posted about uber drivers who have been victims of drunk,drugged up or just obnoxious passengers. here is an example of why uber is a two way street when it comes to trust and safety."
again I was simply pointing out that the driver in the uber/passenger dichotomy is not always the victim of a pompous …drunk or drugged up passenger. it is a two way street. since I have posted in the past about the neurosurgeon resident and the taco bell executive assaulting drivers on tape. I should point this out. and also to be fair there are some creepy folks driving taxi cabs too.
I personally have no need to worry about uber I have a limo with a driver outside my door and when I fly on my private jet another limo is on the runway awaiting my arrival. but I do try to relate to common folk every now and than.
Though I can only count a handful of Uber and 3 Lyft rides, my Uber drivers have all been over 50, and all very polite, and considerate (helping me with my carry on as I head to the airport, offering bottled water, etc.). My Lyft experience was a bit different, my first was a young 30-something guy, who is pre-med and picked me up in Brooklyn. Super nice, super polite. He drove my D & me to breakfast the morning I was heading home. I liked him so much that after breakfast, I actually “looked” for him on the app, and found him, for the ride to the airport. At home, I live less than 5 miles from the airport, and intended to take a taxi, instead popped open Lyft, and was picked up within 2 minutes (the taxi line was about 5 minutes). This time I had a young college guy, who was also nice…and chatty. He was actually dropping someone when his app went off, and came for me. His largest clientele is the big concert/sports arena near where he lives, and he said he’s been gifted more concert/sporting even tickets than he can count. Yep, got all that in under 5 miles.
I like the concept of Uber/Lyft. Are taxi drivers REALLY vetted more than ride share? I’m not so sure. I’ve had taxi drivers who drove like they were taking me to have a baby! My ride share guys have all been safe, and drove carefully, not as “worried” about the meter ticking away…
I live in a college town and one of the drivers here is “Uber Mom”. She caters to the student population, picks the “kids” up in her minivan to take them to the airport or wherever they need to go and is also happy to dispense motherly advice. The students love her and I think she’s got a pretty good thing going.
Around here you have to be 21 to drive for Uber. I’m sure that varies by location. Most of the Uber drivers I’ve had have been probably mid to late 20’s. A couple were middle aged.
I’m not convinced that cab drivers are any safer. And I have had a few cab drivers who seemed to have no idea where major streets and landmarks were.
Oh, those cab drivers know those spots and the shortest routes to them quite well… They simply prefer to take the longer route because it is more beneficial to them. 
I have had cab drivers who asked me how to get places. Yeah, I’m sure plenty take the long way but if they’re asking that’s a totally different thing.
This has only ever happened to me in New Orleans. Whuch is also probably the place I’ve taken cabs more often than anywhere else.