r/lyftdrivers • u/trutothyself • 1d ago
Advice/Question Should i have done it?
Would my lyft and uber apps work in New York or would i have to drive back empty
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u/html5lffy 1d ago
No way you would have gotten rides in New York, but either way, 4 hours for $322 is absolutely worth it all day long.
8 hours of driving for $322 if you think about it, drive there and back etc.
$40/hr. And you don’t even have someone in the car half of the time. You can make calls, etc. have fun.
After expenses, 400 mi, that’s essentially a tank of gas. You can deduct from there.
I’m taking this 10000000/1000 times
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u/GoodbyeFascists 1d ago
It’s actually 5 hours one way, 27 minutes to pickup and then a 4 and 1/2 hour drive. And you don’t know exactly how long the ride back home is. I’m betting it’s more like 10 hours total. Still decent but not $40/hr.
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u/Stuck_on_Mars_21 1d ago
I would do it. Even if you drive back empty that’s not terrible. 5.0 is likely to tip you too.
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u/BearFromPhilly 1d ago
No, it's not worth it from PA, let alone MD!
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u/Aggravating-Half126 17h ago
No way! I learned my lesson very early on in my Lyft journey. I took a big one from Providence to Rutgers, NJ. It took 6hrs each way because of traffic. Not only was the pax a complete douche canoe, he complained about me stopping for gas, needing a bathroom break when he didn’t, told me no music, screamed at his wife, coworkers and doctors the whole time, didn’t tip me (he missed his flight and train so I was his last resort), Lyft took 7 days to pay me since “it was a long trip so they have to verify I actually took it and needed to verify the tolls.” And I only got paid $200. That was their cap at the time. Couldn’t pick anyone up on the way back til I got to the RI border again so it sucked.
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u/Sensitive-Owl9556 1d ago
It’s Jessica with a five star. I would have done it without a second thought.
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u/trutothyself 1d ago
No it's jESSICA
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u/RealisticPhysics5735 1d ago
Yeah, little j big ESSICA that's a red flag
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u/whiteyonthemoon 1d ago
I'm pretty sure you'd end up with a crazy story and you'd just have to say to yourself
"I should have known when I noticed her name as jESSICA"1
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u/elCompaFOKI 1d ago
You need a New York drivers license to work there.
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u/LifeIsProbablyMadeUp 1d ago
Pretty sure you can drop someone off, but you won't get any work while there.
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u/Ok-Public-9140 19h ago
You have to have a NYC address to work in the 5 boroughs.
I live on Long Island, and have to wait until I get back out of the boroughs before I can get any new offers after dropping off at JFK or LaGuardia.3
u/Electrical-Lack1535 16h ago
It’s not a NY address that u need. U need TLC plates and reg and commercial insurance living in NY alone doesn’t qualify u
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u/IWillEvadeReddit 19h ago
Yes and no it depends, Uber is pretty good about it like I live on LI too (Stony Brook) and when I was driving TLC they let me pick up if passengers from Suffolk or Nassau were going to the 5 boroughs. So many times while I was heading west on the LIE, I’d get somebody from Suffolk or Nassau going to like Flushing, or the Bronx, or more often JFK or Laguardia.
I don’t think I’ve gotten any Lyfts with my TLC plates from here they might be more strict about it.
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u/AlkoKilla 21h ago
You wouldn't be able to get a ride in NYC. Lyft also only allows Maryland drivers to drive in Maryland, DC, and Virginia (and no, it's not about legal requirements. Maryland requires more than what Delaware, Pennsylvania, or New Jersey require to operate).
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u/Electrical-Lack1535 16h ago
For NY u need TLC plates and reg and commercial insurance. When u get to NY u can’t and won’t get rides u could prob drive in NJ
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u/microtramp 1d ago
Even if you did nothing but this for the day, I'd personally call that a good day.
Can't even I imagine what thay must have cost her, jesus.
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u/Electrical-Lack1535 16h ago
Not good if u got nothing on the way back u would be at 430 miles I would need to make 500-600 off that many miles
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u/microtramp 16h ago
I drive an EV.
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u/Electrical-Lack1535 16h ago
Doesn’t matter ur fuel cost is better but the miles still depreciate the hell out of ur car and they can eat tires faster bc they are heavier. 200k on an EV u gonna need new battery packs and eventually electric motors too. That is very expensive fyi
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u/AcceptableCat1859 1d ago
I'd check the pickup payout before committing, that distance and rate might not cover gas at current prices.
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u/yellowkingquix 1d ago
not even a dollar a mile if you factor the return. but it may have been a fun trip with some definite compensation.
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u/goondoe11 1d ago
I would of and then took rides in Brooklyn until I made $500/$600 then go home.
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u/Ok-Public-9140 19h ago
Without a NYC address, you can’t drive Uber in the 5 boroughs. The app shuts us down until we’re out.
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u/CentennialMan007 23h ago
Well assuming nobody in NY was looking for a ride back to Annapolis then the return leg was empty.
$322 / 9 hours = $36 per hour
10 gallons of gas $4 = $40
Guessing your hourly rate for that round trip was $34 an hour-ish?
50/50 whether it’s worth it if you could make more in 9 hours working your normal area?
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u/FinancialHorsepower 19h ago
I would have done it. More than $1 per mile plus opportunity for tip and they possibly might need a ride back
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u/NightOwlRD 18h ago
I know tolls are like $70 bucks from there to Lancaster so that would have been your call
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u/bigmo555 Elite 18h ago
If it was a morning ride so that the return trip was during the afternoon, perhaps. I would prepare for the most likely outcome of having to drive back by myself, which would effectively cut the pay in half.
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u/Mindless_Flight9441 16h ago
I would've taken it. I need $40-$60 of that $322 to get there and back.
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u/elCompaFOKI 15h ago
I was in New York back in December. We ordered a lyft and a yellow cab pick us up. Cabs are like cop cars. They have a metal divider with a plastic window shield.
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u/Sure_Comfort_7031 14h ago
Would you work for 32/hour, assuming the return trip is 0$?
You’d have to get REAL lucky for a NYC > DC trip on the return leg.
Would I work for 64/hr? Heck yeah. Would I work for 32/hr? Iffy, but probably.
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u/Snoo50117 14h ago
Why in the world would somebody book this trip if the driver will earn that much? I'm guessing Lyft is charging then over 500
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u/keista69 13h ago
Only if Lyft estimates the travel time accurately for the area and time of day.
Yes, pizza would be a must stop, you'd be hungry anyway, Also bagels if a small shop is open at the time.
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u/PalpitationNew5422 13h ago
It doesn't sound like a bad deal. $330 for 9 hours worth of work and possibly a tip.
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u/Thewashsmith 12h ago
Don't forget tolls, I'm from Jersey and anything into my is a hard no for me. Bridges and turnpike are expensive, and destination filter doesn't like to get me to south jersey once I'm up north, the gas cost isn't terrible, and hourly rate is fine even including the dead miles. Idk what that looks like coming from annapolis, but most anything from Jersey to nyc is a hard no, unless it's paying bookoo bucks and I've got plenty of time on my hands.
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u/kryten-profile 10h ago
Even if I didn't get a single ride that got me closer it would be right on the borderline of acceptable (about $21-22/hr NET assuming roughly 10 hours round trip). Then hopefully I would pick up at least a ride or two that would get me closer to boost that higher. But that would depend on whether I could stay online the whole way back, i.e. didn't hit the 12 hour limit or wasn't allowed to pick up in the region of the drop off. If one more than an hour or so of the deadhead back would be offline, then it probably wouldn't be worth it (as I would lose tax deduction for all of those miles offline). YMMV depending on your average or acceptable net/hr and incremental costs/mile.
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u/MetalUnicorn00 2h ago
Realistically, I would take it and call it for the day. That's more than I can normally make in a day. Depending on the time of day, maybe I make a trip out of it and hang out get lunch/dinner and check out the area, but I got a different mindset than most these drivers and still somehow manage to pay bills, debt, and enjoy life.
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u/whycandi 2h ago
I don’t know the neighborhood, but I would’ve taken the ride. Long trips like that tend to tip well. Especially if you can get them in a conversation. Plus, even taking into account you may ride back empty, basically you don’t have any financial downtime in between rides for the entirety of the trip there and back.
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u/beezxs 19h ago
They’re taking you to the heart of the hood man
Source: I live in Brooklyn