Lawrence Schall, the Oglethorpe College president who decided to perform a “social experiment” working part-time as an Uber driver, shared several things he learned about the popular, and sometimes controversial, ridesharing service.
In an op-ed for the Washington Post, Schall described how easy it was to start working for the company.
“If you possess a fairly new and clean car without visible dents and have a decent driving record, you can join the Uber labor force almost instantaneously,” he wrote.
In addition to being a convenient option for those looking for part-time work, Schall was also surprised to learn that many Uber riders in Atlanta are the city’s low-income residents looking for a fast and cheap way to get home from work.
Schall was expecting to pick up a lot of college students and young people using the service to get home from bars. Instead, he found himself driving most passengers to and from the MARTA train station – the city’s public transportation system.
“Instead of getting a glimpse into the new economy, I was getting full exposure to the burdens of the old economy — specifically, how hard it is for regular working people to make it from their home or apartment to a job every day,” he wrote.
Schall said transportation is a particularly big challenge in Atlanta, where only 18 percent of jobs are accessible by public transit for those who live in the greater metropolitan area.
It’s more than just a regional trend. Uber recently helped produce a study arguing that the ride service benefits low-income consumers by providing service in areas that regular taxis tend to avoid.
Uber originally marketed itself to wealthy Millennials as an upscale town car service, but the company has since added low-cost options like UberX, which is advertised as 40 percent cheaper than a normal taxi, and UberPool which allows users to split the cost of their ride with another person who happens to be taking a similar route.
Nevertheless, Schall is glad that he didn’t give up his day job to drive for Uber. After a giving around two dozen rides, Schall said he is up $200, which he is donating to Oglethorpe’s scholarship fund.
