Uber Approved in Quintana Roo

[L13]

FWIW I think it is likely more due to the luck of the draw than to any direct effect of incoming Uber if indeed it is on the island now. I have always found the majority of cab drivers to be honest.

Maybe, but it was a dramatic change from mostly inflated quotes to 100% correct quotes. Also, it could be some other factor other than Uber, but I couldn't think of one.

 

[berndo]

If the "rich a$$holes" are taking money away from the working people, then the working people should be able to charge the same amount in their local stores and pocket that profit themselves. It shouldn't cost 2 bucks more.

No, the real world doesn't work like that. A big money player can run at a loss in some sections of the business to kill competition. Happens all the time. A small business can't do that.

Uber would never have existed if taxi companies had provided a convenient internet interface and competitive prices from the beginning.

No, software based buiseness models would have been developed eitherway. It's essentially a parasitic buisness model as you can scale up without putting any more work in. Having uber or amazon in Mexico or other, especially poorer countries just siphons money out of their economy.
There is not upside for them and the workers... but tourists with enough money to fly overseas for diving can safe 5 Dollars.
The 'competitive pricing' you want leads to people having to sleep in their cars and not being able to pay for healthcare even though they work full time.
The amazon workers and uber drivers are getting effed over and the people that use these companies are helping to eff them over every day.

 

[morecowbells]

I don't know why anyone uses BS companies like uber and amazon. These companies take money away from working people and funnel it to some already rich a$$holes from some 'tech' corporation.
Super low paying jobs are created by killing normal, semi decent jobs and small businesses... only so people can save a few dollars or get 1 day faster shipping.
Don't use uber or amazon or starbucks... support people who actually work instead of shareholders, even if it costs you 2 bucks more. The world would be better for it.

I agree with you about Amazon, but not Uber. I know several people who work for Uber for some extra spending money. They like the flexibility and ability to choose location and hours. There are quite a few taxi mafias around the world who are not as inclusive and open to new employees such as Uber.

Several years ago, there was a trip report posted about some travelers flying out of Cozumel, but due to an airline issue, had to stay overnight (on airline's dime) at the Hotel Cozumel. The airline arranged for shuttle buses to pick up the passengers and transport them to the airport the following morning. The taxi mafia was blocking the exits and harassing the drivers and passengers. I personally, will continue to use the same cab driver that I have been with for several years. However, I am happy to read about competition against the taxi mafia.

 

[lionfish-eater]

If the "rich a$$holes" are taking money away from the working people, then the working people should be able to charge the same amount in their local stores and pocket that profit themselves. It shouldn't cost 2 bucks more.

Uber would never have existed if taxi companies had provided a convenient internet interface and competitive prices from the beginning. Even after it came to be, if they had responded quickly with that same convenience and pricing, Uber would have died almost at birth. Same thing with with Amazon vs. Sears: Sears already had all the infrastructure to kill Amazon from their catalog business, stores, and distribution systems. But Sears ignored the competition and died instead.

The taxi drivers in Cozumel are responding competitively, and so Uber isn't competitive there (at least for me).

You might want to do some research about how sears went under.
Hint: wall st had a lot to do with it.
Did you know their shares still trade?
But you and I can't trade them because we are commoners.
Look into what Eddie Lampert did to sears.
Look into how much short selling their was by the early investors in Amazon.
Big money can destroy businesses, both large and small.

 

[L13]

No, the real world doesn't work like that. A big money player can run at a loss in some sections of the business to kill competition. Happens all the time. A small business can't do that.

When it started, Amazon was the small business. They started with books only, and both Barnes & Nobles and Borders Books were much bigger, they won on convenience and quality of service. Now Borders is out of service and B&N is the smaller company. When Amazon moved into other areas, there were several much bigger competitors, all of which let Amazon grow based on customer experience to the point where it had the power to be noncompetitive, dominate the market, and drive small players out.

No, software based buiseness models would have been developed eitherway.

But could have been developed by established players.

It's essentially a parasitic buisness model as you can scale up without putting any more work in. Having uber or amazon in Mexico or other, especially poorer countries just siphons money out of their economy.

True, both have parasitic models, but both could have been stopped early if the established players had not ignored the them as a competitors on the customers experience as much as the price.

You might want to do some research about how sears went under.
Hint: wall st had a lot to do with it.
Did you know their shares still trade?
But you and I can't trade them because we are commoners.
Look into what Eddie Lampert did to sears.
Look into how much short selling their was by the early investors in Amazon.
Big money can destroy businesses, both large and small.

You are right, Amazon is not why Sears went under. But long before Eddie Lampert and others did in Sears, it had already given up it's inherent advantage to become what Amazon became. JC Penneys made the same mistake, they could have been Amazon too, but at least they didn't get driven into the ground afterward.

But all of this is getting way off topic.

 

[ggunn]

Maybe, but it was a dramatic change from mostly inflated quotes to 100% correct quotes. Also, it could be some other factor other than Uber, but I couldn't think of one.

Your experience is different from mine; I have not seen any change. I'm just lucky, I guess, but I have been going to Cozumel regularly for many years, and the vast majority of taxi experiences I have had there have not been "mostly inflated quotes". I always pay cabs in pesos, though, for what difference that could make. Are there actually any Uber drivers on the island?

 

[ggunn]

I am happy to read about competition against the taxi mafia.

The so-called "taxi mafia" is just a union, and it is no different in principle or tactics from a lot of other unions all over the world, including here in the U.S. As far as I know the Cozumel taxi union has never killed anyone; the same cannot be said of some unions in this country.

Frankly, I am more upset about the writers' and actors' unions than I am about the taxi union on Cozumel.

 

[L13]

The so-called "taxi mafia" is just a union, and it is no different in principle or tactics from a lot of other unions all over the world, including here in the U.S. As far as I know the Cozumel Taxi Union has never killed anyone; the same cannot be said of some unions in this country.

Union "Mafia" tactics are wrong in every country they are use. Just because they are less murderous in Cozumel than others doesn't make them ok.

 

[Rob9876]

Sometimes people get lucky, sometimes people don't -- when we were there a little over a week ago, definitely 60-70% of taxis over-quoted prices when I first asked.

The taxi mafia is more than just a union -- they have used violence and threats of violence in opposing the moto taxis and Uber. I use taxis there as little as possible now, and hope Uber is able to operate there soon -- this is a very corrupt system. No doubt similar systems exist elsewhere, including the U.S., but that does not make it right.

As to people saying Uber was not needed -- perhaps not in Germany, but definitely was needed in the U.S. Previously the taxi experience in the U.S. was unpredictable in most cities other than the biggest 2 or 3 cities in the country. In cities with less than a million people, you often had to call for a taxi and wait 45 minutes or more, and it was hard to know how much you would be charged once they did show up. Sometimes you would wait for an hour and have to call them back. I'm in the far suburbs of a smaller city, and as I write I can have an Uber driver show up at my house in 10 minutes from now (just checked the app) -- that's a massive improvement.

The Uber app allowing you to know approximately how soon the Uber would be there and how much it would cost to your destination, was a game changer -- that's why people loved it and it became so popular.

 

[ggunn]

Union "Mafia" tactics are wrong in every country they are use. Just because they are less murderous in Cozumel than others doesn't make them ok.

Wrong or not, it is the way of the world. It's leverage, and it's human nature to use it to influence the behavior of others to their advantage. Unions do it, companies do it, and governments certainly do it. Calling the Cozumel taxi union the "mafia" has got to make members of the actual mafia chuckle.