As Christmas party season enters full swing, Australians looking for a safe trip home after a night of drinking have scarce options, which range from getting scammed to the outright bizarre.
If you approach a taxi driver, they will hopefully cooperate and turn on their meter – but do you want to run the risk of them refusing to take you on a shortish trip without negotiating an inflated fare upfront?
You could open a rideshare app and roll the dice on their surge pricing mode that seems to be active more often than not (if your booking isn’t cancelled).
Or do you book a tow truck to take you and your car home (which is, for some reason, now an option)?
Here’s a quick rundown of the colourful options.
Rideshare
Australia’s rideshare landscape is markedly different from what it was in its early years.
Companies such as Ola and Bolt have come and gone, leaving just a handful of players in the market.
Uber’s prices have increased significantly over the past decade, as has the commission share it takes from new drivers joining the service. This has led to widespread criticism of the conditions and pay for rideshare drivers.
The other big player, Didi, can offer better pay for drivers.
There are also services such as Shebah, where female drivers serve women and children passengers. However, there are fewer drivers on this platform, so booking in advance can help.
Of course, part of the appeal of rideshare is the convenience of booking a trip on your phone and not having to negotiate the payment.
The most famous downside of apps such as Uber and Didi is surge pricing, which incorporates a multiplier into a fare amount at busy times when the supply of drivers nearby might struggle to meet demand.
This dynamic pricing incentivises drivers to come to the areas of high demand, and might make customers think twice about riding solo or may push them into another mode of transport.
When one app is surging, it can help to check if the same is occurring on a competitor. This might mean switching between apps such as Uber and Didi for the lowest price.
You can also book a shared pool ride on Uber and ride with a stranger – though this can be a pretty lonely experience that ultimately doesn’t save you much money if the algorithm can’t find you a co-rider.
Taxi
While laws governing taxis are state-based and vary by jurisdiction, drivers must broadly offer to use their meter on trips from ranks. Ultimately, however, it’s near-impossible to know if the driver of the car you’re about to get in plans to scam you.
If you want to avoid even the risk of having something sneaky occur when it comes time to pay, you can book a taxi with an app such as 13Cabs or Rydo.
The 13Cabs app acts in a similar way to Uber, in that it generates the fare at the time of booking, which is locked in and not subject to dodgy tactics from a driver.
If you believe you are overcharged by a taxi driver and want to complain, you’ll need to get a driver’s ID number or number plate. It’s also best to get a receipt for your payment and attach a photo of it to your complaint.
You can complain directly to the taxi company. However, various companies have differing internal standards, and amid a surge in independent operators in states such as Victoria, your main avenue for complaint will be with the state authorities.
Tow truck
Sometimes driving to your destination can seem like your best option, especially if you’re faced with surge pricing or a long wait for a booked ride and are far from public transport options.
But if you don’t have a designated, sober chauffeur, driving there doesn’t have to stop you drinking and still getting home easily.
Didi is now trialling a car towing service in Victoria, where you can book a truck to take your car home safely after a night out, for the same price as a Didi Express ride. If it’s successful, the company might roll this feature out nationally, though for now, it does appear to be a bit of a publicity stunt.
In other cities there are comparable services, such as U Drink We Drive U Home in Sydney, which don’t use tow trucks but instead send a driver out to drive you home in your car, provided you book it in advance.
Public transport, biking, scootering and walking
Private car trips aren’t always the most affordable option, and they’re certainly not the best for the environment.
Public transport will almost always be your cheapest mode of getting home, but it’s important to check timetables at this time of year, especially given the near constant state of rail maintenance periods at night.
If you live in a public transport blackspot, you can also consider a rental bike or scooter. You may have seen these stranded on footpaths. You can also hire Lime bikes through your Uber account.
Crucially, it is illegal to ride a bike if intoxicated, so don’t drink and ride.
If all else fails, walking is a great option that’s free and will also burn calories. Of course, a chronic lack of public lighting in Australia means walking home isn’t always an option that feels safe.
And if it’s too far to walk, you can run.
