Re: “Portland panel discusses ride-share services” (Feb. 19):

The article about the Portland City Council wanting to regulate Uber made me realize there is a lot of misinformation about Uber. I have been a regular Uber rider for eight months. I’ve ridden in Ubers in Portland and in other cities around the country.

ASAP Taxi owner Steve Kuntz is quoted in the article as saying that you get a measure of security and consumer confidence with taxis that you don’t get with Uber. Taxis have their rates on the outside of the taxi, he said, and you can watch the meter in a taxi.

Uber has a flat rate for a trip, and you’re told the price of the ride before you call a car. Taxi drivers are paid per mile and they can take whatever route, which makes it an unknown amount until the ride is over.

After you call for an Uber car, you get the driver’s photo, name and license plate number. If it is a driver you had before and you didn’t like them, you can cancel the call and pick someone else. With a taxi, you get what they send you.

There have been horror stories about Uber “surge pricing.” It turns out the people complaining didn’t pay attention when they were told that surge pricing was in effect. You’re told upfront when they’re charging the higher rates.

I was in Boston and needed a ride. I opened the Uber app and it said surge pricing was in effect, raising the normal price of $10 to over $30. I decided it wasn’t worth it, so I walked.

I hope Portland city councilors try an Uber or two, both here and in a bigger city like Boston, before they make any decisions on what sort of regulations they want to put into place.

Tandy Ratliff

South Portland

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