During a recent trip to Chicago, I had the opportunity to chat with a few drivers about their experiences with Uber Pool, and they were interesting, to say the least.
You see, when Uber Pool and Lyft Line were first made available, many passengers choose to use these services without fully understanding exactly what they were.
So when they found out that they were not headed to their destination, but were actually going to pick up another passenger, riders reacted a bit like this:
One driver, we spoke with told a tale of a passenger that furiously yelled at the driver when they found out they were not getting dropped off first, and just became more infuriated with this driver after he explained that this was an Uber Pool ride and the order of dropoffs was out of his control.
After finally dropping this passenger off, the driver was notified of not just a 1-star rating, but the passenger reported them for being unprofessional!
If you’re a driver then you know this was a common occurrence when Uber Pool was first released. So many drivers are a bit apprehensive about Pool Express, how it will be received by passengers, and how it will affect their pay.
We took a deep dive into Uber Pool Express and in this blog post, we’re going to take a look at what Pool Express is, who can use it, and how it’s resonating with riders and drivers alike.
How does Pool Express Work?
Uber Pool Express works very much like Uber Pool. Instead of driving one party, you will be matched with multiple parties that are headed more or less toward the same area.
Uber’s app will automatically match you with parties and decides who will be dropped off first, second, etc.
The difference between Pool and Express Pool is that Express isn’t a door to door service. There is a set location that is likely a few blocks away from your passenger’s original location. This means they will need to do a bit of walking to come to you, and you will just be dropping them off at a designated location.
Uber claims that “With Express POOL, you’ll earn the new flat fare for every added pickup stop, in addition to your usual POOL rates.”
Uber Pool isn’t available everywhere yet. The service has been available in San Francisco and Boston since last year and has just been released to Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Miami, Philadelphia, San Diego, and Denver, with many more cities on the way.
So if you’re in a large city, you should plan on needing to deal with Pool Express eventually. Though, you can, of course, opt out of Pool Express.
What do Passengers and Drivers think about Pool Express?
For rideshare drivers, it’s important to stay on top of consumer sentiment for the services we provide. When someone is getting in your car, you want to know what their likely attitude is going to be.
For Pool Express, that sentiment has been mixed with the majority of people asking, is this just a bus service?
Many wondered whether it made sense to take the time to walk to the stop:
While some were optimistic for the future:
Drivers, on the other hand, are more concerned:
Many drivers just want Uber to ensure passengers know what they’re are getting into:
What are the pros and cons for drivers?
While the sentiment is mixed, there are a few clear pros and cons for drivers.
Pros:
More trips: Yes, Pool Express would offer shorter rides that would not pay as much as a normal UberX but drivers will almost certainly get more overall pings
Easier to hit incentives: If you’re going for a bonus, hitting your ride quota will be easier if you are getting more pings with Pool Express
More overall demand: Many have speculated that Uber’s entire Pool service is intended to attract passengers that would otherwise not use Uber at all and stick to other Transportation Network Company’s (TNCs). If this is true, that means more overall demand for drivers. Learn about what top rideshare services drivers are using.
No door to door: It can be a pain to search for passengers and find their exact drop off location, so not having to do that will certainly save drivers time
Cons:
The cons around Pool Express revolve around a number of uncertainties and issues that drivers will likely face at one point or another.
Will passengers know what they are getting into?: The big problem with Uber Pool, in the beginning, was that passengers didn’t know what they were getting into. Many drivers ended up with angry passengers that were in a hurry. Uber must properly educate passengers.
Will passengers be on time?: If Express Pool is intended to save drivers time, then passengers must be on time. Will, passengers, end up making drivers wait even longer because they need to walk to their destination?
How will this affect overall pay?: Pay is a huge uncertainty right now and Uber has given little guidance about how Express Pool’s pay will actually be structured.
What does this mean for UberX or UberBlack even?: Does this mean drivers will see even fewer UberX rides? Will this mean UberBlack will almost completely be eliminated?
How should drivers approach pool?
There are quite a few uncertainties around Express Pool for drivers right now, so the best thing to do is to test the service for yourself and monitor your metrics carefully.
I would suggest taking a few days where you focus completely on Pool. Track your mileage, trips per hour, and overall profitability and compare it to when you are not driving pool.
Track your metrics with Gridwise!!!
After a few days, you’ll be able to see exactly how profitable the new service can be for you.
Talk to passengers
When you get a Pool Express ride, make sure that your passenger knows that they are in a Pool Express and knows what it entails before you set off.
That means confirm their name as usual, ask them if they know if they are taking a Pool Express, and let them know that you’ll be picking up other passengers and dropping them off a few blocks from their location.
Don’t be swayed to go door-to-door
Inevitably you’ll have passengers that call you and ask you to pick them up at a different location. Don’t do it, stay stern and disciplined.
This goes for drop-offs as well. As long as the dropoff location is safe, ONLY drop passengers off at the drop-off point. If they complain, make sure they know that you are not allowed to drop Pool Express passengers off anywhere but at that exact location.
Use it to hit your weekly incentive
The very best use case for drivers with Pool and Pool Express will likely be for hitting your incentives. With more passengers using Pool, a smaller pool of drivers doing Pool Express, and shorter trips, you’ll receive more pings more often which will help you hit your bonus.
Only Time Will Tell
Right now, Pool Express is an uncertainty for drivers. We’ll be talking to drivers and analyzing how Pool Express is affecting demand over the coming months and will be reporting best practices back to you.
In the meantime, test the service and let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
