Do you ever question your Uber driver for driving under the speed limit? What is the line between cautious and too slow?
I was recently on a fairly long (100km) Uber journey in a place in which the speed limit was 120km/hr. Nevertheless. the driver limited his speed to 100km/hr. I’m not sure if he thought that was the limit, but there were frequent road signs stating 120km/hr and his car noted the speed limit, which also said 120km/hr.
Nevertheless, we inched along on a fairly empty highway as other cars zoomed by us.
I was working in the backseat and decided not to speak up. First of all, there was a language barrier—the driver did not speak English or German. Second, I had plenty of time. Third, I was on a phone call. Perhaps another reason I did not speak up was because I did not want a bad rating from the driver, though I’m not sure Uber ratings matter all that much and mine seems permanently stuck at 4.88.
But I did find it curious–he reminded me of my father, who typically drives well-under the speed limit to be cautious and maximize his fuel economy. Was he just trying to conserve fuel? The rate was pre-negotiated; it’s not like I was being billed by the minute by Uber.
Have any of you ever told your Uber driver to step on it? I remember one time I was very late to a flight at LAX and had to make a journey across town in rush hour that usually takes about 60 minutes. When I told the Uber driver what time I was departing, he broke many traffic rules to get me to the airport in about 35 minutes. I was simply amazed and tipped him well, though his swerving lane changes were definitely not appropriate. I never told him to break the speed limit, but I guess that was implied by my urgency in reaching the airport as quickly as possible.
This was a totally different situation. But even without urgency, I do not understand why anyone would choose to drive 100km/hr when the speed limit is 120km/hr.
There have been many instances in which Uber drivers have recklessly exceeded the speed limit and made my very uncomfortable. I’d much rather have this problem…
Would you have spoken up to the slow Uber driver? What would you say? To any Uber drivers, what would be your reason for driving slower than the posted speed limit?
As long as the driver is not impeding other traffic, I think it’s perfectly acceptable to drive slower than the speed limit.
The speed difference your Uber driver was going is only 12 mph slower than the speed limit which is much safer than driving 12 mph (20 km/hr) over the speed limit.
Unless you’re in a HUGE rush, a 30 min car ride going 100 km/hr would get you to your destination 6-10 mins later compared to going 120km/hr.
Curious to know what speed range do you find acceptable to drive if the max speed limit is 120 km/hr?
I have left negative feedback depending on how slow they were going. Doing 35 on the interstate in the middle lane is dangerous… doing 35 in a 45 is annoying, but not as unsafe.
If it was in Switzerland, which I suspect it might be, I can hardly blame him. Going just a few over 120 could mean a pretty gnarly ticket in the mail.
Would I personally drive 62 in a 75 zone absent bad weather? H*ll no. Would I complain to an Uber driver about doing the same? Not unless they’re engaging in other unsafe behavior like dawdling in the left lane or impeding traffic. 10-15 mph under the speed limit in the slow lane falls in the “annoying but not unsafe” category – doesn’t seem worth making a big deal about.
LOL, as if America has more than a few miles of more than 65 MPH. Laughable speed limits, and still so many deaths. It’s almost like if you import the third world, you become the third world, huh?
Drivers aren’t paid a flat rate – even though you pay one price regardless of how long it takes to get you there, Uber drivers get paid on a formula based on time/distance. When I lived in NYC, it was routine to watch the drivers look at the route options and try to very quickly choose the slowest one so you couldn’t notice. If you don’t value your time, they’re not strictly taking advantage of you as you’re not paying a higher rate, but I for one also value getting out of my Uber as quickly as possible and would instruct them to take a particular route. So yeah, the more things change, the more they stay the same – taxi drivers used to try to cheat riders, now they just cheat the rideshare service paying them. The services do have algorithms that won’t allow drivers too drastic a deviation, but the drivers will certainly do what they can to maximize each fare.
Thanks for the insight.
Interesting. I know Washington, DC very well. I get irritated when the driver takes a less than direct route. When the ride is priced, is it based on the best least direct route or the most direct route? When I raise the issue (nicely), the response is that ‘I just follow the app’.
Again..As I already questioned a similar point to your… How is your point relevant to the question that was asked?
The issue is about safety, not about a rogue Uber driver.
The untrustworthy are always the distrustful.
How is your point relevant? Safety is the issue here.
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How is your point relevant to the question asked. The issue is about speed limit and safety. Not the route taken.
It really depends. It depends on the car he is driving, the road and on the driver. I got a taxi the other day for a 100 miles ride (Uber drivers rejected my ride 3 times). The guy was speeding while raining on a small car and I had to ask him many times to slow down. Another time I rode with a guy in Germany in the Autobahn and just because there was no speed limit he was driving at 200kmh on a Ford Focus. I had to ask him to slow down.
The speed limit is just that – a limit, not the prescriptive speed at which you must drive.
That’s not the issue. I just asked if anyone has said anything. It didn’t bother me enough to speak up.
What do you mean “didn’t bother you to speak up?”
You mean you routinely criticize people for doing nothing wrong? Of course not.
You implied that the driver was doing something wrong. Except, as you listed, he isn’t making more money, cause the rate is already prenegotiated. He isn’t doing you any harm (people passing means nothing. On many roads you can be going the speed limit and people are passing left and right. Though I presume that is a US thing and in Europe they don’t pass both on the left and the right).
So what is there to speak up for?
This was in Brazil and unfortunately my Portuguese is worse than my Spanish.
I don’t like driving and I don’t like being in cars. As such, I prefer when people drive the speed limit so I can get out as soon as possible. That’s my reason…and it doesn’t mean the driver was doing anything wrong.
Simple solution, avoid drivers who don’t speak the native language of the land. Should be a prerequisite for the job. But Uber and Lyft count on people on the fringes of society not smart enough to realize how little they make if they calculate the devaluation of their vehicles.
Door dash is just as bad, I still am shocked people eat food that comes out of some of these degenerates cars. Some drivers look like they live in them.
He was in Brazil Dave!
Matthew was the non native speaker!
Speed LIMIT is the TOP speed you can drive with no risk of receiving a ticket. It doesn’t mean that everybody should be driving at that speed. You can drive as slow as you want as long as you don’t impede or block the normal and reasonable movement of traffic.
That’s true, but that’s not the issue. My question is simply whether others speak up if/when this occurs or whether the speed of the car, within the limits of the law, is always at the discretion of the driver.
I much prefer Uber drivers who don’t drive in the far right lane at 100mph. Or who are constantly tapping the brake pedals and accelerator. Too slow is frustrating… but as you say. The lesser evil in my mind
My view is that so long as the driver is driving legally and safely, then it’s up to their discretion how they want to drive. I would not have made a comment. Every driver is different and has different comfort levels for how and how fast they drive. I want my driver to drive as they feel comfortable to do and not push themselves beyond their comfort-zone.
Agree. Why push someone out of their comfort level? I’m more concerned that you were pleased when that driver broke traffic rules to get you to LAX. Maybe you should have planned better.
Well Said…
My car, my rules.
As a former Uber driver, I have cancelled on people showing me attitude if they were in a rush – because “poor planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part”.
If they were to ask me nicely, I would try to speed up a little – but only slightly above the speed limit (it’s a bookable offence if you go more than 4 km/h above the speed limit in Australia – not going to risk getting a speeding ticket for a fare that pays peanuts.)
But nevertheless, a ride is a ride. We’re only obliged to get riders safely from one point to another, and that’s about it.
Seems a little entitled to write about this, no? I don’t rate drivers for slowness; as long as I get there safely it’s all fine by me. I won’t take out my lack of time management on them if I’m running late. I never ask them to hurry if I’m going to be late there’s nothing that can be done.
I was very early and gave him five stars – neither one of those issues are at play. As I said, I wasn’t in a rush, I just don’t like cars unless I am driving.