Uber and Lyft in Potsdam Comments From Drivers

Gas prices have made it difficult for Uber and Lyft drivers in Canton, Ogdensburg, and Potsdam to make money at the ride share taxi services.  Clarkson University students and SUNY Potsdam students looking for rides on Uber and Lyft are not finding any drivers available.  Local taxi providers such as Taxi Zero and Potsdam Taxi are often the only taxi providers available in the Potsdam and Canton areas.

Commutes to airports in Massena, NY, where Boutique serves non-stop service to Boston, and Ogdensburg airport, where Cape Air serves three flights per day to Albany and Boston are also affected by the pricing structure of Uber and Lyft ride share services.

Students, parents, doctors, nurses, and professors traveling to Syracuse, NY airport (Hancock), or Watertown, NY where there is service to Philadelphia, PA can get rides from Taxi Zero.

Here are some actual comments from Uber and Lyft drivers:

Like many others, I fell for the uber ads touting big money and convenient hours for drivers. In reality the pay averages less than $6.00 an hour, and people are very reluctant to tip, as that was an option uber uses in its advertisements. The pay is a huge deceit, which goes a long way in explaining the whopping 94% turnover rate in drivers. If the company were serious about its drivers, they would cut their 2t% commission for all fares.

I let my wife drive for Uber for less than a month before I figured out it’s a rip off. When you factor in all costs, your time is about $5 an hour. McDonald’s pays more.

Uber and Lyft will have to start raising rates for riders or they are going to lose a lot of drivers very soon.