# Airport queue: yes or no?



## MadTownUberD (Mar 11, 2017)

There seems to be a lot of negativity towards the airport queue popping up on others threads. I'd like to know how frequently people wait in the airport queue as part of their regular Uber driving. Feel free to state your reasoning after you've voted in the poll.

I have opinions but I'll wait a while to post them here until the 7 day poll window has closed.


----------



## kdyrpr (Apr 23, 2016)

Hartford BDL has a LYFT queue, no UBER queue. Lyft is hilarious because as little as 3 in the queue can easily take over an hour. Actually I don't even know if that is accurate because I usually give up on it. Meanwhile the UBER drivers are riding around randomly jockeying for position. That can be just as frustrating. I really would like to see an UBER queue there.


----------



## MadTownUberD (Mar 11, 2017)

Clarification:. "business" should be defined as "revenues", not trips. So if you bring in $200 in a given day and $100 was due to an airport pickup, even though it was only one trip, the answer is "about half". Obviously you are going to get far fewer trips per hour in the airport queue as compared to downtown bar hopping etc.


----------



## JesusisLord777 (Dec 4, 2016)

As you saw from my recent thread... The Airport in my market is like playing a game of Roulette. 

If you can time it just right then it can be a great tool.... Otherwise it's a giant time waster.


----------



## JimKE (Oct 28, 2016)

Like most strategy questions, the "correct" answer is hugely market-dependent. As kdyrpr reports above, a Lyft queue of 3 at their airport can be an hour wait. At MIA, an Uber queue of 200 is probably less than an hour during certain times of the day. I got in our queue at 120 yesterday and waited exactly 20 minutes -- and this is the beginning of our _slow_ season.

It also matters greatly what kind of rides you typically get from the queue. Here in Miami, I usually get rides in the $10-$15 range, double if it's XL.  For that kind of ride, I'm not going to wait more than 20 minutes. Last week, the queue was low (50-something) and I got a ride before I even turned my engine off.

But at Ft. Lauderdale, just a few miles north, they get a lot of short rides to nearby hotels or their cruise port. My cruise port rides are $12-$15 on X, and are quick all-expressway trips. At FLL, the port rides are short ($5-$8) and very tedious, having to wait in line for security checks and risking a ticket from over-eager sheriffs deputies, both at the airport and the port.

So, like a lot of questions, the answer is...it depends.


----------



## Delivery Mr.Guy (Aug 9, 2016)

No airport for me,
Because Boston Logan airport is next to downtown , $9 per trip for wAiting in the at the queue and go through security inspection in the trunk, give me a break will you?

Uber driver need to go back to school for their math.


----------



## emdeplam (Jan 13, 2017)

I drive a Mirage so airport is asking for low ratings / luggage space


----------



## Coachman (Sep 22, 2015)

I drive in DFW and much of my business has been airport rides. But they recently changed the system so that incoming drop offs jump ahead of the queue for pickups. That's made the typical staging lot waiting time much longer (1hr+) and I've been rethinking my airport strategy.


----------



## REDSEA (Jun 8, 2017)

Tucson airport is also close to downtown/midtown so fares are usually around 10.00 while the que is normally 1-2 hour wait. No thanks.


----------



## JesusisLord777 (Dec 4, 2016)

Coachman said:


> I drive in DFW and much of my business has been airport rides. But they recently changed the system so that incoming drop offs jump ahead of the queue for pickups. That's made the typical staging lot waiting time much longer (1hr+) and I've been rethinking my airport strategy.


Huh?

So if I get a trip in your market to drop someone off at the airport, I could then just go over to your staging area and skip over everyone allready waiting?

If that's the case then I suppose it's an interesting idea. On one hand it prevents drivers from having to deadhead back to a more populated area, but at the expense of being massively unfair to the guys already waiting in the queue.!


----------



## Veju (Apr 17, 2017)

There are only 2 reasons I ever do airports. 

1. I had a drop off at the airport and there are flights about to land

2. I'm in the general area and it's slow and there's about to be flights coming in.


----------



## JimKE (Oct 28, 2016)

JesusisLord777 said:


> Huh?
> 
> So if I get a trip in your market to drop someone off at the airport, I could then just go over to your staging area and skip over everyone allready waiting?
> 
> If that's the case then I suppose it's an interesting idea. On one hand it prevents drivers from having to deadhead back to a more populated area, but at the expense of being massively unfair to the guys already waiting in the queue.!


We've had anecdotal reports of this happening at MIA as well, but I'm not sure if it's an intentional "re-match," or if it's just a glitch in the queue software. At our airport frankly, because of the volume, I think it's pretty much of a non issue -- but it certainly could be at a slow airport.


----------



## Bean (Sep 24, 2016)

The airports in my market are dominated by drivers that spoof their GPS location. I don't have enough time in my day to compete with them for trips that may only be a couple of miles long.


----------



## REDSEA (Jun 8, 2017)

Bean said:


> The airports in my market are dominated by drivers that spoof their GPS location. I don't have enough time in my day to compete with them for trips that may only be a couple of miles long.


How do they do that? Must be what's going on here because there's always 2 in the que, All night (no plaines landing until 9 or so daily) unless they live there.


----------



## Bean (Sep 24, 2016)

http://soliddriver.com/GPS-Spoofing-A-Growing-Problem-for-Uber

My income got decimated when my local airport got a queue put in. I've got Tampa International about 45 minutes away but it's been the same there for as long as I've been driving. So I'm going to have to find a new place/time to do my driving. I understand that part of the gig is being able to adapt to market changes but this was done with three days of warning from Uber so I'm scrambling to find income at the moment.


----------



## Trafficat (Dec 19, 2016)

I only stop at the airport queue if my last trip ended at or near the airport and there happens to be very drivers there combined with a high number of planes arriving... or sometimes I stop to use the portapotty and get lucky with an unexpected exodus of cars from the lot.


----------



## SadUber (Jun 8, 2017)

No way. Airport people are snobs.


----------



## corniilius (Jan 27, 2017)

If I'm in the area and it seems to be moving, I'll take a break there.If nothing comes up when my break is over, then it's time to move on.

I'd rather not have people putting their crap in my trunk though. Happier just dropping off and picking up.


----------



## Coachman (Sep 22, 2015)

JesusisLord777 said:


> Huh?
> 
> So if I get a trip in your market to drop someone off at the airport, I could then just go over to your staging area and skip over everyone allready waiting?


Lately I haven't had to bother heading to the staging area... the ping comes in almost immediately after dropping off at the terminal. There might be 200 cars waiting in the queue.

Btw, this doesn't work if you use the "destination" feature to get to the airport. You end up at the back of the queue.


----------



## swingset (Feb 26, 2017)

I will NEVER sit in a queue waiting on a nibble. That's a fool's errand.


----------



## MadTownUberD (Mar 11, 2017)

Well let's see. Earlier the airport was actually surging and while I didn't get a surge pick up at the airport tonight I have gotten one in the past. I tend to get nice XL pickups at the airport that go a reasonable distance, like $29 earlier. Often it's just one man and a couple of bags. As long as the queue is short and there are a couple few flights coming in momentarily, it does in fact make sense at least here. And it's a good way to take a break, clean the car, and minimize risk. So I answered my own poll "about 50%".


----------



## empresstabitha (Aug 25, 2016)

The thing about the airport queue is knowing when to go to be in the queue long enough to take a pee break when needed.


----------



## MadTownUberD (Mar 11, 2017)

Update: I just had a 2.5 x Surge from the Madison Airport. $32 for 22 minutes and 10 miles. And I didn't have to wait in the queue at all because I didn't even get to the airport when I got the Ping.


----------



## Oscar Levant (Aug 15, 2014)

MadTownUberD said:


> There seems to be a lot of negativity towards the airport queue popping up on others threads. I'd like to know how frequently people wait in the airport queue as part of their regular Uber driving. Feel free to state your reasoning after you've voted in the poll.
> 
> I have opinions but I'll wait a while to post them here until the 7 day poll window has closed.


A lot depends on the city, the airport, etc. I like the airport, but I do take other runs, mix it up.



Bean said:


> The airports in my market are dominated by drivers that spoof their GPS location. I don't have enough time in my day to compete with them for trips that may only be a couple of miles long.


It my city, spoofing doesn't amount to much because you never have to wait more than 10 - 15 minutes anyway. The blacks do it a lot, but they wait 3 hours for a trip ( unless you spoof ).


----------



## AZWheeler (Jun 13, 2017)

For me it depends on what's going on, since TUS can have a gap of up to an hour before any planes land, I'll work the streets for a while then jump in the queue when I need time to use the bathroom, eat, and tidy up my car.


----------



## hulksmash (Apr 26, 2016)

I'll only go if I happen to be nearby and there's nothing else going on in the city. At lax it's only worth it when it surges. Lately there's either too many ants filling up the que waiting to take base fares to uber plays games with the surge even when the que is low. They've also expanded the que to those with incoming dropoffs so t makes it harder to surge. 

It really is like roulette. You have to have great timing to get a quick ride or surge ride and then hope it goes a reasonable distance. You have to hope there is a surge by the time you get through the que, which is really hard to predict lately.


----------



## Terri Lee (Jun 23, 2016)

If I'm near the airport, or have just dropped off a pax; I'll check out the cell lot.
From there it's a matter of checking the numbers ahead of me and the airplane app to determine how many planes are due how soon.
I like the airport. Mostly nice people and mostly sober. And mostly long trips.


----------



## El Cemento (Apr 25, 2017)

Terri Lee said:


> I like the airport. Mostly nice people and mostly sober. And mostly long trips.


I agree, folks are more likely to be prompt and courteous when flying.


----------



## Dutch-Ub (Mar 1, 2016)

I've learned two important lessons, first lesson, if there is a designated pickup point, never accept 5* pings. Mostly pax that are new to Uber, can't find them, they can't find you, airport stress etc.

Second lesson, don't wait at the airport.


----------



## Bean (Sep 24, 2016)

Dutch-Ub said:


> I've learned two important lessons, first lesson, if there is a designated pickup point, never accept 5* pings. Mostly pax that are new to Uber, can't find them, they can't find you, airport stress etc.
> 
> Second lesson, don't wait at the airport.


Soooo true about the 5-star pax at the airport. They're very hit or miss. Sometimes you'll get lucky but most of the time you're going to end up with a no-show because they can't find you, they're still in baggage claim or embarrassingly often, _they are still on the plane!_


----------



## merryon2nd (Aug 31, 2016)

I have days where I like to catch up on handicapping, or my favorite show on hulu, or take some time and read a chapter of my book. Or just have an excuse to not be at home while not working too hard. THOSE are airport only days. I leech off wawa Wi-Fi, and chill, and do other things besides deal with people as I wait for rides to come to me.
Days I feel like grinding, I avoid the airport like the bloody plague.


----------



## Hyundai2015 (Oct 6, 2016)

Pensacola airport queue is very long. Can take a couple of hours to get a pax if there is the normal 15-20 drivers waiting in it. Not worth it.


----------



## Woohaa (Jan 15, 2017)

I only do LAX on certain days and times. Any deviation is simply a waste of time. Had a nice PT once from downtown to the airport and didn't want to ride back empty so I figured the que would be quick considering the low que number.

But nearly an hour later I was still waiting and kicking myself for waiting that long. Did I mention that inbetween waiting in the que I got a ping at LAX and when I got to the pickup the pax called asking why it was that I was upstairs? Heavy sigh. Countdown to cancel ensued.


----------



## daniel001 (Jun 8, 2017)

I'm in Bham, Alabama and drive usually Saturdays while my wife is at work (1-9 pm for extra money. I say this as context for what I'm about to relate. Use it however helps you.

The airport here has a queue, there's no tolls, etc for driving through (which is nice), the Uber cars have a designated (and well shaded) lot to wait at less than a mile from the terminal, and the airport never has more than 6 or 7 flights arriving in an hour (typically 3-4). Again, this is Saturdays.
The queue is usually 12-18 cars and I have yet to sit less than 45 minutes, which is not cost effective when the best payout from an airport pickup I've had was $23. It took me WAY to the far edge of town and I had a hard time finding another pickup in that area.

Yeah, not doing airport queue again here. It's way better running around taking people to 5 Points South or the breweries or to their hotel or wedding or shopping destination.

Hope this helps out someone else in the area.


----------



## Another Uber Driver (May 27, 2015)

The professional airport hackers here keep up on the airline schedules, so they know when to hit the line. At some point, the veteran TNC drivers will take a hint and start to do the same. From experience, they learn how fast the line moves once the aeroplanes start to land. Experience will teach the TNC drivers the same. It will take time, but for those who want to invest said time, it will pay off--usually.

I find either hacking or driving TNC in places other than the airport pays much better for much less work.


----------



## daniel001 (Jun 8, 2017)

Yeah that's exactly what I've done any time I get in the queue: weigh the arriving flights from the site vs the queue length. It feels about 2-3 Uber requests per flight max any time I've done it, and that never pays off when there's 12 cars ahead of you in the queue. This airport here simply does not have the volume of arriving flights.

The only way it makes sense is if you've been online for hours and hours. You get in the queue, take a nap for an hour, and have a ride waiting when you wake up. 

Otherwise, it's garbage and you're better off anywhere else.


----------



## Bozewoman (Jun 19, 2017)

Summer airport traffic is high in my city so I thought airport runs would be plentiful. MAYBE it's because Uber is still new in my city, but it has NOT been profitable to go to the airport specifically looking for rides. Twice I've gone and sat in my car for an hour with nothing to show for it. (This is even with the airport schedule, knowing when planes are landing.) And I'd be sitting around with other Uber drivers as well. Sure, I pass the time reading a book or messing around online, but it's still wasted time.


----------



## yojimboguy (Mar 2, 2016)

Terri Lee said:


> If I'm near the airport, or have just dropped off a pax; I'll check out the cell lot.
> From there it's a matter of checking the numbers ahead of me and the airplane app to determine how many planes are due how soon.
> I like the airport. Mostly nice people and mostly sober. And mostly long trips.


I operate in exactly the same way, except sometimes I take a breakfast or reading break in the early mornings, by getting into the cue knowing that I'll have time for my cheese puff or to read another chapter on my Kindle.

And if there's a cue larger than 5 or 6 cars, I don't bother.


----------



## El Cemento (Apr 25, 2017)

SFO is a shytshow. Cops with ticket books circle like vultures matching permits to plate numbers, looking for missing decals, sleeping, which is illegal in the TNC lot; all of which they will fine you heavily for.
Drivers sit around for hours, smoking. Jet fuel smell is everywhere. Portapottys are it, no handwash for you in that cage.
Queue is effin pathetic. 100+ not unusual.
I will drop pax, and slowly troll for a pickup which sometimes happens, but I am not going back to that lot for any reason.
It's a dismal place to wait.


----------



## Frank Martin (Nov 12, 2014)

Only if people need a ride to the airport.


----------



## popcollar2014 (Nov 15, 2016)

I have never waited in an Airport Queue. Its better to drive over to the Gaslamp/Downtown SD to check out the sights.


----------



## MadTownUberD (Mar 11, 2017)

So I just got done working the morning commute crowd from 4:00 until 9:00 am. After subtracting expenses it equated to $10/hr and NO UberXL requests.

I think I'd rather wait in the airport queue where I tend to get UberXL requests and make the same amount of money ($10-12/hr) but with fewer trips. It's the perception that you're making less money because you have to wait, with with XL and longer trips it evens out.


----------



## NOLA-Uber (Nov 13, 2015)

JesusisLord777 said:


> Huh?
> 
> So if I get a trip in your market to drop someone off at the airport, I could then just go over to your staging area and skip over everyone allready waiting?
> 
> If that's the case then I suppose it's an interesting idea. On one hand it prevents drivers from having to deadhead back to a more populated area, but at the expense of being massively unfair to the guys already waiting in the queue.!


Uber just started re-match here in New Orleans. After dropping riders at the departures area I get an instant ping to the pickup area about 75% of the time. If I'm really lucky ill drop a $34.60 XL and immediately pickup a $32 XL headed back downtown. Almost $70 for a round trip airport run. If it Uber X, then its only $24.84 for the drop off and $22.04 for the trip back downtown. Our airport is 16 miles from downtown.



Coachman said:


> Lately I haven't had to bother heading to the staging area... the ping comes in almost immediately after dropping off at the terminal. There might be 200 cars waiting in the queue.
> 
> Btw, this doesn't work if you use the "destination" feature to get to the airport. You end up at the back of the queue.


It works with the destination filter here in NOLA.


----------



## NOLA-Uber (Nov 13, 2015)

Hyundai2015 said:


> Pensacola airport queue is very long. Can take a couple of hours to get a pax if there is the normal 15-20 drivers waiting in it. Not worth it.


I've seen more than 200 cars waiting at our airport here in New Orleans. That's why they started the re-match, to get those cars back into the downtown area making money.


----------



## Sgt_PaxHauler (Oct 21, 2016)

Uber recently announced that they were bringing rematch to Austin. I suspect that's going to be good for the drivers shuttling pax from the downtown hotels to ABIA during the day, but bad for the folks parked along Cardinal Loop. 

Before the return of the Duopoly, I was a fan of doing airport queue days with Ride|Austin. Hanging out in queue might have meant that I only got a ride every 60-90min, but it was usually a decent ride of $15-30 on Standard, and if I caught a ride or two on the way back to ABIA, even better!
With the Duopoly back in town and rematch active, I can't recommend doing airport queue duty in Austin any more. 

I'd also second the recommendation made earlier about doing your research on when the largest groups of planes would be landing. FlightStats.com is your friend.


----------



## REDSEA (Jun 8, 2017)

Hopefully rematch eliminates spoofing as well. There's usually 2 cars in the TUS lot overnight and no flights incoming until after 8:30 AM. I only drive from 3:30-5:30 before work so I never get pickups at the airport I only drop off.no que for me.


----------



## popcollar2014 (Nov 15, 2016)

I prefer not to sit in the queue. I actually got a ping from across after a hotel drop off. Pretty good fair for $30.00 for the trip.


----------

