Uber, a smartphone app that enables people to summon a professional driver in a black luxury car with the touch of a finger, is expanding its reach in Metro Detroit by adding an uberX option for using a nonprofessional driver at a lower rate.
Those drivers, using their cars, sign up to drive and are screened by Uber.
Uber is essentially a digital dispatcher.
The company doesn't provide cars or drivers, just the technology to get a ride. Payments are made through the app with the rider's credit card.
The new service adds everyday people to the pool of available drivers. Uber's top-tier drivers have a chauffeur's license, while those in uberX drivers don't need one.
Screening covers these areas:
- Driving record and personal background checks
- In-person interview
- Metro Detroit knowledge exam
- Vehicle inspection
Uber’s corporate insurance policy applies to all rides and riders can rate drivers after every trip.
An Uber blog post lists sample fares for uberX, which are cheaper than its regular Uber rides. The minimum cost for an Uber ride is $10, compared to $5 for UberX.
A black luxury car from downtown to midtown is about $18 with Uber and $7 with uberX. That compares to $5-$12, plus tip, in a standard cab.
To get from downtown to the airport, a standard Uber ride is $70; uberX is about $45 and a Metrocar is $56.
The smartphone app allows users to choose between "uberX" and "black car" (the standard Uber ride with a professional driver in a black luxury vehicle).
UberX has received pushback over regulations in cities like San Francisco, Los Angeles, Charlotte, and D.C., where taking any kind of payment for transportation without a special license is legally questionable.
As a promotion, Uber offers three free rides before Nov. 30 as long as the ride costs under $30 -- enough to get from Detroit to Royal Oak, but not to to the airport.
