UBER in England

Old Oct 8th, 2016, 01:57 PM
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UBER in England

I have never used UBER or any other ride share service, but as we are looking at England as our next destination, and I do not want to drive we would like to use one. Does any one have any ideas on how this works? Are there enough drivers? Can we depend on them for timely connections? We would be going from Heathrow to Salisbury and surrounding areas.
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Old Oct 8th, 2016, 02:29 PM
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Have you not considered using trains?
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Old Oct 8th, 2016, 08:41 PM
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National Express coach would be cheaper and probably quicker.

If you decide to take the train then use the Railair bus to get to Woking, then there are direct trains to Salisbury.
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Old Oct 9th, 2016, 03:15 AM
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this gives you an idea how everything joins up http://www.traveline.info/
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Old Oct 9th, 2016, 03:53 AM
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Uber's not a ride share service: it's a taxi company.

Unlike proper taxis, though, it hasn't sorted out how to pick up customers at Heathrow legally or reliably.

If for some reason you don't want to use public transport, google "taxi heathrow Salisbury" and seek quotes from a Salisbury area company.

As a decent general rule, for most "We"s, it's slightly costlier to use a destination-area taxi than public transport to get from Heathrow to most non-London destinations (except Oxford and Bath, where the direct bus is WAY cheaper) between 50 and 100 miles from Heathrow. But (again, except for Oxford and Bath) it's usually considerably faster. Using London-based taxis is usually considerably pricier.

Over 100 miles, public transport almost always wins massively on price.
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Old Oct 9th, 2016, 08:34 AM
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Your post mentions 'surrounding area' . . . so it seems you are also asking about uber or similar for your sight seeing.

Bad idea. But to give you good advice we need to know where you are wanting to visit. Because if it is just the typical Salisbury/Stonehenge/Bath/Winchester -- buses and trains work just fine.

If you want to get to really rural places -- then a local taxi or driver (contact the Salisbury Tourist office for referrals)
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Old Oct 9th, 2016, 01:49 PM
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we are taking the train from Heathrow to Salisbury. We are looking for transportation around the rural areas for sight seeing

"If you want to get to really rural places -- then a local taxi or driver (contact the Salisbury Tourist office for referrals)" thanks janisj
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Old Oct 9th, 2016, 03:51 PM
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>>Heathrow to Salisbury>"If you want to get to really rural places -- then a local taxi or driver (contact the Salisbury Tourist office for referrals)" thanks janisj
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Old Oct 11th, 2016, 05:24 AM
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We are 6 months out from today, booked our airline tickets and also booked The "Stonehenge Experience tour" for the day after we arrive.

That being said we love medieval castles, old Churches, markets and the squares there located on, Roman stuff, pub food, beer, the blues, and things we haven't read or heard about.

What I was trying to do is get a feel for alternative to the train, bus, and taxi. What I would like to hear about are drivers for hire, taxi drivers that contract out by the hour, weather we would need a smart phone with an "app", or just a throw away flip phone.

I have driven for decades and have rented cars in France and Germany, but at this time of my life I do not want to drive on the "wrong side".

Hope this clears things up, after our Stonehenge Experience tour on the 14th we plan to mooch around west England and Wales till we meet up with friends in London on the 21st. We want to see Winchester Cathedral, the "Round Table", and Bath for certain. Any suggestions of sights to be seen or to be missed, we have plenty of time for planning, let the conversation begin.

I should change my handle to "PAplumber retired" but don't know how or want to.
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Old Oct 11th, 2016, 06:45 AM
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Actually, Uber does have a service that is ridesharing, it's called UberPool. Have no idea how available Uber is in general or UberPool at Heathrow. But if you want Uber around Salisbury to rural areas, you wouldn't be expecting UberPool anyway.


If you've never used Uber, maybe you should start so you get used to it. Then, in Salisbury, no harm in giving it a try to see if you can get anyone, nothing to lose it seems to me by doing that.

If you don't even own a smartphone, that would be an investment just to buy one and sign up for a service and figure out which one is best for international usage, etc. Seems like a lot of trouble just to use Uber. But you can check their rates online with a computer to get an idea
http://uber-rates-salisbury-wiltshir...estimator.com/
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Old Oct 11th, 2016, 09:48 PM
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"If you've never used Uber, maybe you should start so you get used to it."

In primitive, third-world, societies with truly crap public transport like California, possibly.

But in a developed country? What possible point is there wasting time playing with silly toys (worse: having to learn how a silly, user-despising, toy works this year, secure in the knowledge it'll work differently in a year's time) when you can simply phone a real taxi firm for the odd occasion buses or trains won't do.

Techno-gullibility is fine in a world dedicated to feeding the egos of over-remunerated geeks if you haven't got a life to live. It's a tragic misuse of your time if you have real interests.
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Old Oct 17th, 2016, 05:44 PM
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Ok, I'm an older traveler, I'm generally a technophobe, and only started to use Uber here in the US just this year, and did briefly use it in the UK this summer, so perhaps I can weigh in on the discussion, as someone who was in the OP's shoes not too long ago.

1st, Plummerman, you really ought to start using Uber here in the US whether or not you intend on using it overseas. It is a "wave of the future" kind of life skill, much like learning to send text messages with smart phone was ten years ago. I recently used Uber in travels to DC and Texas and it is a very nice option to have if/when you are travelling here in the US. (or for that manner, if your car breaks down)

Now having said that, I submit you NEVER want to PLAN on travel by Uber in the UK, as the Uber technology assumes you have FULL access to the local cellphone net. That's why it works so well in the US for US users. And yes, it is a smartphone app and that is the only way to use it. One doesn't "call" for an Uber ride. (oh, Gawd, that's so, you know, like the 90's!) The Uber app on your smartphone digitally communicates directly with the driver's cellphone app. That's how it works. In the UK, your phone may or may not reliably use the local cell carrier's signal and you can count on some kind of tech snag at precisely the moment you need it the most. On our trip, we could use Uber only at times when I was able to access a local Wi-Fi hotspot. Sometimes this worked and sometimes not. Used to good effect in Edinburgh, but not so in more rural areas. So Uber is only SOMETIMES an option to the American traveler, and use it if you can, but I recommend never COUNTING on it.

Also, as alluded to in flanneruk's posting above, the taxi industry in the UK is a bit different than here in the US.
Here, let's say you are in a strange city, and you need help calling a cab. You would typically be in trouble, especially, say, in Anacostia, DC. Most Americans do not know what to do or how to get hold of the local cab company. By contrast, everyone in the UK (my impression) knows "this bloke" down the street who is their favorite cabbie and has a few cab numbers on speed dial on their phone, and are usually all too happy to refer your business to their buddy. And instantly, you know someone who knows someone, so you probably get a break on the fare. Desk clerks at your lodging are particularly good with this kind of advice, and this is particularly true outside the main cities. WE sent 4 days in rural Wales, and the cabbies not only were amazingly reliable and reasonable cost-wise, but also served as pseudo-tour guides. Riding in the cab was as much fun as getting to the destination! So, I agree. Plan on public transportation, use of Taxis when that is not available, and try Uber for a few rides, but just a few.

Lastly, you may wish to "Google" cab companies and "car and driver hire" services in the towns you are interested. Most now have a web presence with a way to message them through the web page. Tell them want you want and ask for a quote. Some may offer a reasonable hourly rate, and some may not. Depends a lot on the local market.
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Old Oct 17th, 2016, 05:56 PM
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excellent/practical post docdan.

Even w/o the issues you describe -- there might be the odd happenstance to use the service.

But just philosophically I would never ever use uber in London. London cab drivers must study for years and pass very difficult tests -- and I simply don't think it is fair to give their business to some bloke-with-a-satnav uber driver.
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Old Oct 17th, 2016, 06:22 PM
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Thanks, Janis, indeed the spectre of Uber and the emerging driverless vehicle technology creates some potential changes to society which are hard to contemplate. Much like what happened here in the US, where a dry goods store down the street run by a mom and pop and their granny, got bulldozed away to make room for Wal-Mart car park. There are no easy answers, but for now, yes, the traveler to London should heed your advice.
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Old Oct 17th, 2016, 09:53 PM
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I simply don't think it is fair to give their business to some bloke-with-a-satnav uber driver.

Fair has nothing to do with it. Technology has made The Knowledge obsolete. I mean, I could drive the streets of London with Waze and replicate 95% or more of their knowledge. Not saying you can't feel badly for the cabbies, but the appropriate solution for their problem isn't to pretend the situation doesn't exist. I mean, the automobile put a lot of people out of work too. Yes, we could have pretended that horses were the future to save a few jobs for a little while, but ultimately the auto would have won. The same with satellite navigation and information sharing. London cabbies benefited when barriers to entry (knowledge of routes) were high. When you rely on barriers to entry rather than adding real value, your position is built on sand.

As to the question... I have been fairly impressed with Uber in the UK. That being said, I've only used it in urban areas. For inter-city travel like you suggest, it seems sub-optimal.
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Old Oct 17th, 2016, 10:28 PM
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you have your personal philosophy - I have mine (w/ or w/o italics)
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Old Oct 17th, 2016, 11:32 PM
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From my point of view UBER allows you to access people being paid below the min wage/min pensions contributions etc to do the work. I have problems with that.

Do the black cabs and the taxi firms milk it, well if the main taxi firm in London was not such an un-pleasant man (think Trump without any redeaming features) it would help, and if black cabs did not expect to charge so much it would also help.

I think the black cab knowledge will only die when GPS systems get way better than they are now, maybe another 5 years.
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Old Oct 26th, 2016, 05:27 AM
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Interesting quotation from a Silicon Valley tech wonk: the context was concerning a different subject, but in a way, this reinforces janis' point:

"Here in the Valley, we’d prefer our technology to be free of annoying social complexities. We’re extremely good at imagining a world where a particular innovation has won the day, but we’re also pretty talented at ignoring the messy transitions necessary to actually get there."
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Old Oct 29th, 2016, 08:34 AM
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And the messy transitions have just bitten them in the backside:

https://www.theguardian.com/technolo...mployed-status
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Old Oct 29th, 2016, 08:44 AM
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From my point of view UBER allows you to access people being paid below the min wage/min pensions contributions etc to do the work. I have problems with that. >>

Patrick got in before me. From the Guardian article:

>

this has put the cat among the pigeons, and not just with Uber.
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