Uber Taxi in Singapore

UBER finally in Singapore and elsewhere too!!


Well, well well... a new way of hiring a cab has finally reached Singapore. Its there, an expansion made in San Francisco that gives me hope that free markets will prevail in any other part of the world! Its finally here, a real alternative to established taxi companies.

Well, its an alternative for the passengers more than for drivers as taxi companies don't mind if you book a cab via Uber or not as long drivers keep renting from taxi companies. Having said that, you might ask yourself what is Uber taxi all about and why is this Apps phenomenon reaching out to millions of potential customers ?

Uber is an on-demand car service that allows you to request private drivers through applications for iPhone and Android devices. The service utilizes dispatch software to send the nearest driver to your location. Don't be fooled into thinking this is some sort of shared ride or cab service - Uber will send you a taxi-style car. The service provides a no-cash-payment solution that charges your ride directly to the credit card on file with your account.

Uber reached an astonishing USD 20Bn. market cap and its partly owned by Google. I bet Google knows what future is all about and they've certainly done a good investment! Uber offers to all subscribers a first time ride bonus of $10 via this link: Uber Taxi Apps

Alternatively you can also download it from your Iphone or Android.

I have been trying out a few taxi booking apps in Singapore e.g. EasyTaxi, GrabTaxi and Uber to book taxi rides – I liked Uber the most because you don’t have to pay cash to the taxi driver; when you reach your destination, he will input the metered fare (and any surcharges e.g. booking fee, peak hour, CBD) onto an Uber-provided iPhone and the fare will be deducted from the credit card you provided Uber. You will then immediately receive an email from Uber on your fare. 

Another good point of booking Uber is that you can track the driver location on your phone while you wait and you have nothing better to do! If you left something behind in the taxi, you can also call the taxi driver immediately – the phone number is still in your booking history. It also gives the rider a chance to rate the driver and vice versa. That is an addition feature that makes a ride more pleasant and gives passengers an option to rate a driver.

Unlike GrabTaxi, it is not compulsory to input your destination but if you do, it gives you your Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA) which you can share with your friends/colleagues waiting for you via the “Share my ETA” function in the Uber app – on the driver’s end, it automatically maps out a route using Google Maps that he can refer to. The UberTaxi driver is obligated to wait for you for 5 minutes at the pick-up location and if you are a no-show, a $2 cancellation fee is charged to your credit card – which i think is only fair to the driver.

All other surcharges applies e.g. peak hour, ERP, city area, airport pick-up – just like a typical taxi ride. You do not pay in cash or credit card on the spot at the end of the journey – the metered fare with all surcharges is sent to Uber by the driver and the fare will be debited from your credit card on your Uber account – no credit card surcharges.

A good example would be my recent ride from Marina Square to East Singapore. The damage for a single ride in a standard cab cost me SGD 23 whereas Uber SGD 18.50 which is more than 20% less.

Just imagine that this is not a promo but just standard charging. Perhaps the biggest threat to the traditional taxi doesn’t come from the massive surge in competition, but from the fact that the Uber experience is actually pretty good.

All you need is a smartphone and the Uber app. Press a button, and a car will pick you up. You don’t even need to go to an ATM – it just charges your credit card.

Compare that to a traditional taxi firm. Unless you hail a cab from the street, you need to call a dispatch office. If you’re in a foreign country where you don’t speak the language, this can be immeasurably challenging.

Some people see Uber as a threat to traditional Taxi companies and some don't. I leave this controversial point to your own assessment but what I can tell you that its fun using Uber!