Uber starts scheduled rides, cabbies still furious

JC Reindl, Detroit Free Press

The popular Uber ride service will launch its "scheduled rides" feature today in metro Detroit, making further inroads into a business once dominated by traditional cabs and black cars.

The new feature gives Uber customers the option of booking a ride between 15 minutes and 30 days beforehand. Previously, Uber riders could not schedule ahead and had to hail a ride via Uber's smartphone application from whatever Uber drivers happened to be on the road.

Kaitlin Durkosh, an Uber representative, said scheduled rides have often been requested by riders, especially those needing to catch an early-morning flight. The service is initially limited to Detroit riders who signed up early or Uber for Business and Business Profile riders; it will expand in coming weeks to all metro Detroit riders.

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"Even though we pride ourselves on providing on-demand rides, we totally get it," Durkosh said in an e-mail. "When you've got somewhere to be at a very specific time, it’s nice to have extra assurance that a ride will be available when you need it."

The scheduling feature could make Uber an even more formidable competitor with area cabs and black-car services, which have long taken ride reservations by phone.

Some of Uber's airport shuttle rates are already significantly cheaper. The total cost of a one-way trip from downtown Detroit to Metro Airport in an UberX car runs $24 to $30. The same ride would cost about $50 in a cab or $61 in a black car, not including tip.

Detroit cabbies say they've been held back from competing head on with Uber by outdated city regulations and cab companies that are slow to adopt smartphone apps.

“There are companies that don’t seem to understand technology," said cabbie Kenneth Reynolds, president of the Metro Detroit Cab Drivers Association.

Reynolds said drivers feel "shackled" by Detroit's cab regulations that, among other things, require them to charge the city's official rate — last adjusted in 2001 — of $1.60 per mile with a $2.50 base fare or face a misdemeanor. Drivers for Uber and competing ride service Lyft aren't subject to pricing restrictions.

Cab drivers have asked Detroit officials to relax those regulations and give them an operating agreement similar to what Uber and Lyft have had in the city since 2014. This spring, the city renewed its temporary operating agreements with Uber and Lyft for another year.

“Just level the playing field," Reynolds said. "You already deregulated the industry, so take the shackles off of us. They (Uber and Lyft) already got a head start."

Melvin (Butch) Hollowell, Detroit's corporation counsel, said discussions are ongoing between the city and the cab drivers for a potential future agreement.

"We are trying to glean best practices from other cities around the country," Hollowell said. "These technology companies are here to stay, we certainly are welcoming them and I think they've done a great service as it relates to the general public."

The Michigan Legislature could resolve much of the controversy later this year through various proposals that would apply to all cabs, black cars and ride services, said Matt Oddy, operations manager for Checker Cab. Some of the proposals in Lansing would loosen existing rules for cabbies and limos and let them set their own rates like the ride services do.

Next year, Oddy said, Checker Cab could deploy the Uber-like "Taxi Hail" smartphone app for Detroit cabs.

He said Uber and its business model, which uses everyday drivers who often lack state chauffeur licenses and commercial-grade insurance, are in violation of current Michigan law. The Michigan Department of Transportation sent Uber a cease-and-desist letter several years ago, but MDOT officials say they lack authority to enforce the letter.

Asked for comment, an Uber spokesman did not address the alleged state law violation, but praised the City of Detroit's operating agreement for ride-service companies.

"Detroit has embraced this innovation and the benefits for both riders and drivers that have come with it," the spokesman said.

Contact JC Reindl: 313-222-6631 or jcreindl@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter@JCReindl.