Would you work as a rideshare driver?

My car

Rideshare has become good business, especially for the customers. For years, a customer was at the mercy of Taxi drivers. Friends, please don’t misunderstand me, because I was a Taxi driver myself. I have met some good, honest Taxi drivers who would bend over backwards to please the customers, but like in any business, you have some bad apples. I remember, years ago, landing in New York City at the Kennedy airport, I took a Taxi cab. The driver got lost in the city and I had to pay a high fare. He shaved off a few dollars but it was still high.

Bearing in mind my past experience, I decided that it would be a different story, once I got hired to drive a cab. I got hired in the late eighties, and as a cab driver, I would do my best to be honest. The company provided me with a map of the city. I made sure that I knew that map from top to bottom. When I picked up my fare, I would ask the customer –“What route do you want me to take?” I figured that was safe and I would not be accused of cheating them. I remembered when I first started, I would struggle to make a living. After my two years had passed, I was blessed to be one of the top earners in the cab company. Then, I left the business and started working for Verizon. Little did I know that in the future, I would drive customers around town but in a different setting.

Enter Ridesharing.

When I retired from Verizon after 21 years, I got hired to work in a non-profit ministry. I wasn’t making much, but I managed to supplement my income with other side jobs. A friend encouraged me to try Uber. At that time, I needed a car. So, I figured that buying a new car and using it to supplement my income with Uber and Lyft (Another rideshare company), would be ideal. I read how you can earn up to $20 an hour, so I decided to try it. At first, I made some money but it wasn’t $20 an hour. After gas and spending over an average of almost 30 hours a week, it was more like maybe $8 an hour. Still, that managed to help me bring some much needed cash to my home and pay the bills.

Soon, I stopped driving because I was not satisfied with the time spent driving. The $20 promised in the ad was not working for me. Still, there were times, that once in a while, I would drive and earn a few bucks here and there. There was, something, that I did noticed in the short time that I drove for rideshare. In a big city, it is possible to earn that amount but living in Norfolk, Virginia, is not ideal. It is a small city, plus, there are a multitude of drivers that you have to compete with.

Uber and Lyft have some free and discounted cards that you can share with friends and family. You can,even, distribute it at the local businesses around the area in which you live. You can make some money if you can get some contacts but that takes some time and patience. Uber has some strict restrictions for using your car but don’t worry–They have another option available. You can rent a car in order to drive around but my advice is to look before you leap. Don’t rent a car if you are driving part time. Make sure that you can spare at least 10 or more hours in a day. Doing that will ensure that you have the rent, gas and a profit on the side. Also, a rule of thumb when driving—Early mornings and rush hours are ideal to make money if you don’t mind fighting traffic.

Other alternatives

Another way in which you can earn some fast cash is to work as a recruiter. I recruited a member of my church and she was a good-getter. I made a cool $100 when she completed her first 30 trips for Uber. You can, recruit drivers, too but you got to get your foot in. You got to start driving for Uber and Lyft. The nice part is that when I got my referral, she, also, got her $100 bonus—so it was a win-win situation. I got some links for you below if you want to try driving and becoming a recruiter. While I don’t regret my experience with rideshare, I like to recruit other people–It’s easier and you don’t have to fight traffic. Thank you for reading and feel free to share my article.

Useful links–

1- For Lyft—-https://www.lyft.com/drivers/ANGEL024534

2- For Uber. Look at the ad on my facebook page (Link below)–