The Curb App – does it even come close to Uber and Lyft?
Do you know about Curb? It’s a taxi-summoning app that works exactly the same way as Uber and Lyft: you download an app, then use the app to call a car.
The main reason Curb sounded appealing to me is that you can supposedly use the app to request a ride at a certain time using the “pick me up later” option.
You can set this time for anytime that same day, or tomorrow.
Doesn’t that sound great?!
The problem is that while I have tried DOZENS of times to hail a cab through the Curb app, I have only been successful THREE times. On any given day, if I try to use the app, this is what I see:
Notice the complete lack of yellow cabs in the screen shot?
So, I’m wondering: has ANYONE been able to use Curb on a regular basis? If so, where are you? Where does Curb work? I’ve tried it in San Francisco, Oakland, New York, and Phoenix. I’d love to know if it’s actually a reliable option in any other cities, or if it’s a bust all around.
Please weigh in with your success (or lack therof). Let’s crowdsource to figure out if this actually works or not!
If it does, you can get a free ride up to $10 with a referral code. If it doesn’t, I’m planning on deleting the app from my phone once and for all 🙂
So if we are going to Maui can a friend easily transfer some of their curb balance where we can use it to get around the island?
JustSaying – In my experience, nothing is easy with Curb 😉
I wonder why you’re having such crummy luck with this service. I’ve been using this app for several years (it predates Uber and Lyft both, I believe) and whereas I have had some failures, it fairly reliably produces a taxi at my door to take me to DCA or Union Station, pretty close to when I ask it to.
And actually, I have used it to schedule future pick-ups far more times than I have summoned a taxi for immediate service.
The last two times I have used it (both in the last week), I have cancelled the booking because it took too long for a nearby driver to be found. But out of an n of perhaps 35, those instances have been the exception.
Anyway, sorry that you’ve had a crap experience with it.
WhiteDesert – Yeah, I know…I wonder why it’s just not working for me!? I really want it to work, and I keep trying, but no luck.
Could it be because one of you are trying to get rides from the airport (unsuccessfully), and the other is trying to get rides from other origins to the airport?
Many airports have a separate set of regulations, of course, for taxis than your normal city regulations. Maybe the app avoids this altogether? Maybe the taxi companies that partner with the airports avoid taxi apps since it’s a stand in such a high demand and requiring of extra funds that commission to an app is impractical?
I’ve suspected the same issue after reading many reviews of the app from the Google PlayStore, although i’ve never used the app. (I do have an interest/stake in it though! Please comment!)
It used to be called TaxiMagic and it just depended on if they had electronic booking agreements with a cab company in your city. For instance, they used to have an agreement with MetroCab in Boston, but the last time I checked, they no longer did.
A similar app, Hailo, just ceased operations in the USA.
Another similar, taxi centric app, FlyWHeel just got additional funding and may launch in BOS.
Mika – There are definitely a lot of different options out there these days. Some work better than others 😉
I used it twice when I was in Portland, OR a few weeks ago. I never waited more than 5 minutes, and it was quick and convenient. However, I was staying in a pretty central location.
Rachel – So it works in Portland!! I will consider keeping the app so I can use it on my next trip there.
I hope they get it ironed out. It’s nice to have more reliable options, especially as news continues to hit about the smarminess of the competition.
Sadly, they’re not in my area