# Surge pings



## Kalee (Feb 18, 2015)

Why is it that during the 10 minute duration that I'm sitting in a surge zone that I receive multiple pings 15 minutes outside the surge zone but when I'm outside a surge zone I never get a ping from a pax that's inside the surge zone?

The surge area is allegedly where high demand is but I rarely ever get a ping in one.


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## Uzcaliber (Aug 22, 2014)

There is an option in the rider app for "Notify" mode, wait and notified when the Surge is over. When you have high number of riders in "Notify" mode, it still triggers Surge to bring a lot of drivers into the Surge zone but may not get any ping. You may get lucky when some of them are in hurry or they are new to Uber, or don't understand the math of Surge.


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## plocp (Apr 1, 2015)

I assum you work at PA like me, the surge in PA from my experience mostly fake surge, you can wait hour in the surge zone and without getting a single pin, instead you keep getting those 12 min away pin, it happen to me all the time, some time I will get lucky cuts some desperate pax need to go home, especially late night around bar close time, then those surge will be real cus you can see everyone on the street fight for a ride home


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## UberXTampa (Nov 20, 2014)

It is mostly fake surge.
I was in the middle of one such surge today afternoon while I was driving along west shore blvd southbound. Surge lasted quite some time, at least 25 minutes. Area was full of uber cars and none were vanishing! There was clearly no actual demand. Uber might be faking surge to crowd people into certain areas. I made more money from cancellation than surge fares today. This is how bad it is. Just 2 min fare surge rides so far


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## Kalee (Feb 18, 2015)

What could Uber's rational be for wanting to crowd cars into an area when there is no demand?


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## ekate (May 3, 2015)

Personally I think they should offer more competitive rates as a whole and leave the nonsense surge for really high demands...this would work better for everyone! Why have such ridiculously low rates that $4.00 fare yields Uber $1.80 and the driver $2.20 almost 50%...at $10.00 fare Uber yields $3.00 driver $7.00 actual 30%....$20.00 fare Uber yields $5.00 driver $15.00. Consider this 3X surge at $60.00 yields Uber $13.00 driver $47.00! The only service I've ever known that keeps lowering their fares! Uber is winning big...drivers are not receiving what they're really worth in the industry!


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## KGB7 (Apr 23, 2015)

Thats because you have 100 other Uber drivers in the Surge area.

In my area, i see college students driving Uber all the time on the weekends and on the weeknights. Wait till colleges students start driving full time in the summer, youll be making peanuts.

And with a new Uber "make $6,000" promotion to bring in new drivers (your friends), roads will be filled with drivers.

Making money with Uber is like gambling. You dont know if youll get surge PAX and if PAX is a 5 min drive or a long drive to airport.

If you want to make money, then youll have to work 10 hours straight.


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## UberXTampa (Nov 20, 2014)

Kalee said:


> What could Uber's rational be for wanting to crowd cars into an area when there is no demand?


Based on historical stats the Anticipation of an expected demand?


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## KGB7 (Apr 23, 2015)

UberXTampa said:


> Based on historical stats the Anticipation of an expected demand?


Might as well guess weather pattern for the next 3 years with Uber statistical mathematics.

The infinite monkey theorem states that a monkey hitting keys at random on a typewriter keyboard for an infinite amount of time will almost surely type a given text, such as the complete works of William Shakespeare.


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## Uzcaliber (Aug 22, 2014)

Kalee said:


> What could Uber's rational be for wanting to crowd cars into an area when there is no demand?


As far as money is concerned, Uber has nothing to lose. They don't burn gas, you do. The Surge generation may have a complicated algorithm such as recent history of demands for a given time/day/week/month, demands in the past 1/2 hour, number of riders who set the app on the "Notify" mode (until Surge is over). I don't think it's always accurate as far as real-time supply-vs-demand, you hope you may get lucky.


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## UberLyftguy (Feb 2, 2015)

Uzcaliber said:


> As far as money is concerned, Uber has nothing to lose. They don't burn gas, you do. The Surge generation may have a complicated algorithm such as recent history of demands for a given time/day/week/month, demands in the past 1/2 hour, number of riders who set the app on the "Notify" mode (until Surge is over). I don't think it's always accurate as far as real-time supply-vs-demand, you hope you may get lucky.


I couldn't have said it better myself!


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## DrJeecheroo (Feb 12, 2015)

UberLyftguy said:


> I couldn't have said it better myself!


Well did you try to say it better, but just couldn't?


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## DrJeecheroo (Feb 12, 2015)

Kalee said:


> Why is it that during the 10 minute duration that I'm sitting in a surge zone that I receive multiple pings 15 minutes outside the surge zone but when I'm outside a surge zone I never get a ping from a pax that's inside the surge zone?
> 
> The surge area is allegedly where high demand is but I rarely ever get a ping in one.


Because when the surge is on, the pax has finally wised up to it, and wait for appropriated amount of drivers to enter the area.


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## Uzcaliber (Aug 22, 2014)

LAndreas said:


> It just takes one client, who's in a hurry and doesn't get a car right away, and who then agrees to the higher price point in the pax app to trigger a surge.
> 
> Our rider app has a lag, so that surge stands for a little while, even if that one rider who triggered it has already been matched with a car that came online just in the nick of time (or just got within range).


So, you are saying it takes one client to trigger Surge, and the Surge itself has a lag. It means there is a good chance many drivers may be chasing after a single client during Surge therefore there is a good chance no one gets it, not to mention the lag.


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