# Why can't I make an Uber reservation? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 26, 2022, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401 "2022-08-26T15:32:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/1 "2022-08-26T15:32:21Z")
I’ve never used Uber before. I’m trying to set up a ride for this afternoon. The website has a feature for reserving a ride (for up to thirty days in advance). But for some reason it’s not letting me reserve a ride. It’s telling me I either have to request the ride right now (which is over two hours before I need it) or change my pick-up location (if I could travel to a different location I wouldn’t be calling for an Uber ride). What am I not understanding here? Why can’t I book a ride in advance? I could just wait and make an immediate request at the time I actually need the ride this afternoon but I suspect they will then tell me they can’t do that either. TLDR version: Uber sucks. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/2 "2022-08-26T15:35:49Z")
Switch to Lyft. They let you make reservations. (I’ve never used Uber, mainly because I don’t think they treat their drivers well.) ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/3 "2022-08-26T15:38:02Z")
I used to drive for Uber and Lyft and hated when people reserved rides for the next day because often they changed their request at the last minute and there I was heading over to their place thinking I had a ride going to the airport. So I stopped taking them. Also Uber and Lyft have no idea if they will even have a driver near your location ahead of time as they are constantly moving around. Perhaps they decided that there was too many bad experiences with reservations and stopped providing them. ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/4 "2022-08-26T15:46:44Z")
This happened to us with Uber last week. Apparently in less trafficked areas they don’t allow reservations. If we’d been in a location a mile away, the reservation would have been accepted. Very frustrating. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/5 "2022-08-26T15:53:36Z")
> [@Si\_Amigo](#): > > Also Uber and Lyft have no idea if they will even have a driver near your location ahead of time as they are constantly moving around. If only there was some way they could know ahead of time that a person at that location wanted a ride at a given time. > [@Si\_Amigo](#): > > Perhaps they decided that there was too many bad experiences with reservations and stopped providing them. If they’ve decided to stop providing reservations, they should stop offering them. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/6 "2022-08-26T15:55:52Z")
> [@gkster](#): > > This happened to us with Uber last week. Apparently in less trafficked areas they don’t allow reservations. If we’d been in a location a mile away, the reservation would have been accepted. Very frustrating. I figured this might be the case. That maybe they just don’t provide service to my town (although we’re only talking a fourteen mile drive). This is why I’m hesitating on waiting until I need the ride and then calling for it. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/7 "2022-08-26T15:59:19Z")
Lyft is also not working very well. I enter the addresses and it wants to set me up with an immediate ride. I hit the link to set up a later time. I enter the time I want. Lyft then asks me what the addresses are. And we start all over again. Lyft also doesn’t make it clear if the time I’m entering is when I want to be picked up or when I want to arrive at my destination. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/8 "2022-08-26T16:14:14Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > If only there was some way they could know ahead of time that a person at that location wanted a ride at a given time. That’s not how Lyft and Uber work. They don’t send drivers to sit around and wait to pick someone up. They grab someone nearby that finished up a ride in the area. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/9 "2022-08-26T16:19:52Z")
Correct, And if a driver heads over there to pick up a reservation and the person cancels at the last minute the driver is stuck with no pay and wasted gas money and wasted time that they could have been earning money. Its a disincentive for drivers to sign up for reservations as often it is a waste of their time. They do not know that you are an outstanding person that never misses an appointment. Many people are not and it ruins it for everyone. I think a taxi service may be more inclined to take a reservation and keep it. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/10 "2022-08-26T16:23:22Z")
> [@gkster](#): > > Apparently in less trafficked areas they don’t allow reservations. Interesting. Seems to me that in such places, reservations would be the ideal option. I’m almost surprised such areas are not “reservations only.” ---
**Author:** ![Folly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folly/32/3219_2.png) [@Folly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folly)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/11 "2022-08-26T16:24:49Z")
The platforms aren’t really designed for reserving ahead of time because they want to evaluate driving conditions and quote you a price ahead of time. I once tried to reserve an early morning ride to the airport. It was so expensive, I didn’t bother to book it. The uber I requested ASAP in the morning was there in 7 minutes and was half the cost I was quoted the night before. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/12 "2022-08-26T16:25:35Z")
> [@Si\_Amigo](#): > > I think a taxi service may be more inclined to take a reservation and keep it. Agreed. If the OP wants assurance that they will have a ride ready to pick them up at a particular time, then a taxi service (if such still exists in their area) is probably a better choice than a rideshare service. That said: I also agree that, if Uber and Lyft really don’t like reservations, and seem to want to make them difficult to do, they should just not even offer them. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/13 "2022-08-26T16:27:00Z")
> [@AlsoNamedBort](#): > > That’s not how Lyft and Uber work. They don’t send drivers to sit around and wait to pick someone up. They grab someone nearby that finished up a ride in the area. You don’t sit around and wait to pick somebody up. That’s not how a reservation works. You know ahead of time when the customer wants you to be there. I’m going to stand by what I wrote above. If Uber and Lyft have decided not to provide reservations, they shouldn’t be offering reservations. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/14 "2022-08-26T16:30:10Z")
The drivers do not work for Uber and Lyft, they are independent contractors. Uber and Lyft can make promises all day but that doesn’t mean that a driver will take the reservation. And there is no penalty to drivers that don’t take them. The rideshare companies could offer cash incentives to the drivers to take them, but guess what, they don’t. At least they didn’t when I drove for them almost 4 years ago. They sort of kinda just hope a driver is near by at the time of your reservation. If not you are out of luck. Might help if you made your reservation an hour ahead of when you actually need it if you still decide to use Uber or Lyft. ---
**Author:** ![Folly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folly/32/3219_2.png) [@Folly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folly)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/15 "2022-08-26T16:31:04Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > You don’t sit around and wait to pick somebody up. That’s not how a reservation works. You know ahead of time when the customer wants you to be there. Back when I lived in a sketchier Chicago neighborhood I learned the hard way that reservations with cab companies don’t always work that way. Nobody was assigned to my reservation time. They just broadcast the request x minutes before the scheduled time. If nobody wants to go to the sketchy neighborhood, then nobody shows up. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/16 "2022-08-26T16:36:09Z")
My mom and brother live in a town about 30 miles northwest of the Dayton airport in Ohio, no taxi or Uber/Lyft service there at all. The local papers made a big deal when a local signed up as an Uber driver and they talked about how the town would now have a service for people who needed a ride. Guess what happened? The first ride the guy got to go to the airport was the last ride he gave in that town. Once at the airport it was more profitable for him to take a ride from the airport to wherever the next person was going, and so on and so on. Often times at the end of the day he had to drive back to his hometown with no ride, on his dime. Had he stayed local he likely would have only made half of what he made by going to the metro area. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/17 "2022-08-26T23:10:46Z")
I went with Lyft. The driver would have been happier if they had told her about my pick-up ahead of time. It turns out she lives just down the street from me. But because Lyft didn’t tell her ahead of time, she drove in to Rochester like she usually does. And then they sent her back to her own street to pick me up. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/18 "2022-08-26T23:35:55Z")
> [@Si\_Amigo](#): > > I used to drive for Uber and Lyft and hated when people reserved rides for the next day because often they changed their request at the last minute Maybe a non-refundable $10 minimum fare for reservations would make sense? I’d think most people who are booking a long way ahead would be happy with that, those are usually things like airport trips where the certainty is valuable. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/19 "2022-08-26T23:39:50Z")
> [@Folly](#): > > I once tried to reserve an early morning ride to the airport. It was so expensive, I didn’t bother to book it. The uber I requested ASAP in the morning was there in 7 minutes and was half the cost I was quoted the night before. For travel to and from the airport, I often use a door-to-door airport shuttle service that picks up or drops off multiple people. Supershuttle used to be a big nationwide provider but they went out of business at the start of the pandemic (more because of Uber and Lyft than the pandemic). ---
**Author:** ![kitap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b9e5f3/32.png) [@kitap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kitap)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2022, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401/20 "2022-08-27T03:59:56Z")
> [@Si\_Amigo](#): > > Correct, And if a driver heads over there to pick up a reservation and the person cancels at the last minute the driver is stuck with no pay and wasted gas money and wasted time that they could have been earning money. Its a disincentive for drivers to sign up for reservations as often it is a waste of their time. They do not know that you are an outstanding person that never misses an appointment. Many people are not and it ruins it for everyone. > > I think a taxi service may be more inclined to take a reservation and keep it. There was a cab company here that would take reservations BUT wouldn’t assign it. So guests calling to find out where their reserved cab was would get told “it should be there in 40 minutes; call back if they aren’t there in 20.” I used to get into fights with them and explain the guest made a reservation for the **airport** and couldn’t wait. They were all “This is the way we do it” so I’d snarl “cancel it” into the phone, hang up on them, and call a more reliable cab company. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-make-an-uber-reservation/970401.md?page=2)