# Drive fast or slow?



## Emp9 (Apr 9, 2015)

which is more optimal to maximize how much you earn? i will of course never speed with a customer, but is it in my best interest to hurry a bit or just relax?


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## Casandria (Dec 20, 2014)

Relax because they often will cancel a minute or two after requesting the ride.


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## limepro (Mar 7, 2015)

Once you pick them up getting them out quickly is a plus, less time to judge you, they are happy they got there on time and you can be available for another rider.


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## Guest (Apr 10, 2015)

I often ask them, especially at the dinner hour, if they are on a time constraint. Often, if they have a reservation and they are a little behind, they TOTALLY appreciate the effort to get them to their venue and verbally say so, and rate me well. The same could be asked during work hours. If they have a meeting, etc. Same with airport, flight status. Sometimes just asking goes a long way as being perceived as a professional, caring driver. If they tell me they have lots of time, I turn Sirius to The Joint or Chill and we cruise. I get lots of great feedback from that too. If you've got a nice ride like I do, let them enjoy it.


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## Fuzzyelvis (Dec 7, 2014)

Emp9 said:


> which is more optimal to maximize how much you earn? i will of course never speed with a customer, but is it in my best interest to hurry a bit or just relax?


Drive to not have an accident. That's the number one MOST important thing to worry about.


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## Showa50 (Nov 30, 2014)

The way the fares are structured, it's best to be done with the ride quickly. Fares that are mostly at Highway speed are best.


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## elelegido (Sep 24, 2014)

Faster can be better, but certainly not always. Examples at SF rates of $1.30 per mile / 26c per minute:

20 mph = 1.30 + 3 x .26 = $2.08 per mile. It takes 3 min to do a mile, so per minute gross revenue is 2.08 / 3 = 69 cents

30 mph = 1.30 + 2 x .26 = $1.86 per mile. It takes 2 min to do a mile, so per minute gross revenue is 1.86 / 2 = 93 cents

Stepping on it and increasing average speed from 20 to 30 mph increases per minute (during ride) revenue by 24 cents, or 35%

It's important to note though that a per minute increase is only relevant if pings are frequent. On the other hand, the slower the pings are in coming through, the less important per minute revenue becomes, down to a point where stringing out a ride as long as possible will be preferable.

It is possible to work out at what point slowing down becomes more beneficial than speeding up, based on ping frequency, but I can't be bothered. Over to Uberhammer or Desert Driver.


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## Emp9 (Apr 9, 2015)

elelegido said:


> Faster can be better, but certainly not always. Examples at SF rates of $1.30 per mile / 26c per minute:
> 
> 20 mph = 1.30 + 3 x .26 = $2.08 per mile. It takes 3 min to do a mile, so per minute gross revenue is 2.08 / 3 = 69 cents
> 
> ...


 nice response, i was trying to figure it out , im in a busy area , so i guess faster would be better.


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## gprimr1 (Mar 7, 2015)

I drive at a normal speed.


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## Michael - Cleveland (Jan 1, 2015)

Emp9 said:


> so i guess faster would be better.


It's a bit more complicated than that.
First, if you're doing city driving, the 30MPH doesn't really apply because it doesn't account for the time sitting in traffic or at stop lights.
And second, as your speed increases so do your expenses (as your gas mileage drops).

I doubt anyone is going to significantly increase or decrease their earnings by adjusting the level of aggressiveness in their driving style... So I just try to drive as smoothly as I can and as safely as possible. The 15 seconds more it might cost me to get to a pick-up could be the difference between getting in an accident / receiving a ticket - or arriving unscathed.


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## gprimr1 (Mar 7, 2015)

I'd say driving like a lunatic would be bad, and driving so slow it's obvious your trying to get more time is bad.


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## Emp9 (Apr 9, 2015)

Michael - Cleveland said:


> It's a bit more complicated than that.
> First, if you're doing city driving, the 30MPH doesn't really apply because it doesn't account for the time sitting in traffic or at stop lights.
> And second, as your speed increases so do your expenses (as your gas mileage drops).
> 
> I doubt anyone is going to significantly increase or decrease their earnings by adjusting the level of aggressiveness in their driving style... So I just try to drive as smoothly as I can and as safely as possible. The 15 seconds more it might cost me to get to a pick-up could be the difference between getting in an accident / receiving a ticket - or arriving unscathed.


yes i agree, i didnt mean i will speed ,but more willing to catch the light and move a long a little more quickly in general. because if i take my time just 2 lights could mean 3-5 min more in fare.


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## Michael - Cleveland (Jan 1, 2015)

Emp9 said:


> yes i agree, i didnt mean i will speed ,but more willing to catch the light and move a long a little more quickly in general. because if i take my time just 2 lights could mean 3-5 min more in fare.


Hey - I hear you, really. I still have to remind myself to just back off a bit - and in my head I play the tape of the officer asking "so, where's the fire?"
More importantly, look in the recent threads around her for one titled something like "I just got t-boned', or 'I was just in an accident'. From a legal standpoint, it's great that an accident is someone else's fault - but that doesn't do you much good when you're off the road for 2 weeks waiting for car repairs and arguing with insurance companies. Driving defensively is smart... driving aggressively is stupid... and I'm stupid in that regard more than I should be. It's a hard habit to break.

(uh-oh... I just called myself stupid - I hope I don't get banned from the forum for that. Nah - won't happen... too many others have already called me stupid and they're still around.)


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## jiwagon (Feb 19, 2015)

Let's see. If you get into an accident, Uber has data on your speed. Consider that. In other words, they might not cover you.


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