![]() ![]() He also didn’t respond to questions about what cities currently have upfront fares or how Uber’s algorithm calculates driver fares. Uber’s Hartfield didn’t respond to questions about why Uber changed its pay structure in these markets, when the pilot first began, or whether it plans to take it nationwide. “But the real problem is the secrecy, because it makes it impossible to verify.” “We don’t have any evidence that Uber is doing this,” Toh added. “When you put a fare calculation behind a black box algorithm, it’s possible to have the capacity to learn from driver behavior … and actually learn what is the lowest rate a driver will take for a ride.” ![]() “Uber didn’t come out and say this is going to be algorithmic, but the criteria that they are using-a range of factors and things that aren’t specified-could indicate that the fares are going to disappear behind a black box algorithm,” Toh said. The more opaque the fare calculations, the more drivers, regulators, and the public have a hard time holding the gig companies accountable to fair and transparent pay standards, said Amos Toh, a senior researcher for Human Rights Watch who studies the effects of artificial intelligence and algorithms on gig work. It appears the company initially started testing the pay structure in a handful of cities about six months ago, including Columbus, where Vance lives.īecause it turns out moving fast and breaking things broke some super important things. cities in states including Texas, Florida, and throughout the Midwest. According to both sources, Uber has rolled out upfront fares to a total of 24 U.S. Reuters additionally reported on it last week. The Rideshare Guy blog (which partners with Uber and receives commissions for signing up new drivers for the company) was the first publication to detail Uber’s new pay structure. “Some drivers are really looking forward to this because they think it’s going to be a positive change,” Vance said. So, the 20.9-mile trip would have earned him about $21, and the 8.8-mile trip would have brought in roughly $9. Source: Uberīefore Uber’s change in pay structure, Vance said he’d normally average around $1 per mile once time and distance were calculated, especially if he was driving on the highway. Screenshots from an “Upfront Fares” Uber trip in Columbus, Ohio, that show how much the driver earned (left), how much the customer paid (center), and how much Uber received from the fare (right). Vance said that Uber often takes around half the fare. When asked about its take from Vance’s trips, Uber’s Hartfield said these trips were not necessarily representative of Uber’s usual take. The other trip, which was 8.8 miles and included an airport drop, the customer paid $22, Vance got $6, Uber took $9, and the remainder went to airport fees and sales tax. One shows a customer paid $30 for a 20.9-mile trip, Vance earned $14, Uber got $13, and the rest went to sales tax. ![]() But Vance shared screenshots with The Markup of two recent trips he did for Uber that show the company took far more. Uber has long said the average amount it takes from fares is about 25 percent. ![]() “Before, you could guestimate-back of envelope calculate-and see that this far and this long and figure out you’ll make this much,” said Sam Vance, who’s been a full-time UberX and Lyft driver in Columbus, Ohio, for more than four years. On top of that, they say, it seems like Uber is taking a bigger cut of fares. Some drivers say, however, that they’ve mostly seen lower earnings overall since the change. That means, he said, drivers will make less money for longer trips but should earn more on shorter trips. Uber spokesperson Harry Hartfield said upfront fares are about giving drivers “more control and choice” but will include a “balancing” of payments. In the past, most drivers wouldn’t receive this information until after they accepted a ride. They see more details of a prospective ride before accepting it, such as the fare and pick-up and drop-off locations, which is something drivers say they’ve been asking for. The company says the new feature provides drivers with more transparency. Uber has long used an upfront pricing algorithm to determine how much passengers pay, which is one of the reasons riders sometimes see vast price fluctuations. What all of those factors are is unclear. Uber has quietly changed the way it pays drivers in several major cities across the U.S., using a new feature it’s calling “Upfront Fares.” Instead of paying drivers for trips based on just time and distance, it’s now using an algorithm “based on several factors” to calculate the fare. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |