Students and residents of Oswego may recently have noticed that a new way to get around the area has popped up: Uber.
Uber was the topic of much debate earlier this year, when New York was deciding whether or not ridesharing apps, like Uber and Lyft, would be permitted in the state.
The service was operating in New York City under a 2001 taxi law, but the bulk of New York state was without any ridesharing options until June 29.
At the end of June, Uber rolled out its service to the entirety of upstate New York, allowing new drivers and passengers to use the transportation service at midnight June 28.
For the Oswego area, students have frequently used the service on weekend nights in competition with the Oswego D Bus, a transportation service run by Walker Enterprises since 2003.
The D Bus is known to transport students who cannot drive, whether because they are impaired or do not have a car, to the downtown area. Though Uber is commonly used for the same thing, it utilizes an app to connect a potential rider to drivers in their own personal cars. The D Bus, however, drives up and down Bridge Street and around campus, looking for groups of students.
The competition between the D Bus and Uber is not that marked. An Uber vehicle can transport six people at most, but most of the cars in the Oswego area can fit four at most. The D Bus, which has many busses in its fleet, can fit large groups of people.
“Uber has definitely taken some business, but I don’t think it’s enough to be worried about,” said Andrew Braunagel, a D Bus employee.
Another difference between Uber and the D Bus is the price. The D Bus charges a flat fee of $2 per ride, no matter where the rider is going in Oswego. Uber charges a minimum fare of $7.35 per ride, according to its app, including a $2.15 booking fee.
The Uber service charges $0.22 per minute to wait at a location for the rider and $0.95 per mile for travel. This pricing difference may be the reason more students appear to use the D Bus over Uber.
“In Oswego, I believe more people opt for the D Bus,” said Anna Constantini, an Oswego State student who has used both services.
The differences in the services go beyond the pricing for the two. In New York, to operate a large bus, drivers must have a commercial driver’s license. The CDL permits drivers to operate vehicles that, among other things, will transport 16 or more people including the driver. The CDL certification process in New York requires a permit test, as well as practice hours and a second, three-part test to receive the CDL, not counting specific endorsements, that allow for the transport of things like hazardous waste.
An endorsement all D Bus operators must have is one that permits them to carry 15 passengers.
“I think any job that requires transportation of people should all require some sort of training or special license,” Braunagel said.
Uber drivers only operate small-to-large-sized cars, with a passenger cap of six. They are not required to get any special license, and the Uber application process checks their license for major traffic violations or accidents. If they have a clean license with an unofficial maximum of three violations in three years, a car that is a maximum of 10 years old, no crime on their background check and insurance, they are able to drive for the service.
Uber, however, does not see transport companies like local cabs or the D Bus as their competition, but instead as a service their presence complements.
“Our competition is personal car ownership because if you know you can get a reliable ride home anytime, you’ll be more likely to use the bus or a taxi,” said an Uber spokesperson.
An Uber spokesperson says that its mission is to “make transportation as reliable as running water, everywhere for everyone.”
Photo Dalton Patterson | The Oswegonian
