News and notes from around the interweb:
- This is amazing to me. I check both for price and wait times, and when equivalent choose Lyft for better rewards.
Apparently, only 16% of people check Uber and Lyft. I'm very surprised! Every time I do, I'm shocked by the amount of price dispersion.. pic.twitter.com/x2IHFPSjNY
— Tim de Silva (@timdesilva) November 12, 2025
- Initial permit issued for Chicago O’Hare Concourse D
- They’re worse than DCA’s old gate 35X, and that unified everyone – Democrat and Republican alike – in opposition. This is something we can all come together on, and in these times that’s something we desperately need.
Is there anyone, in either party, or who lives on any planet, who supports the Dulles People Movers? I'm not sure there is a 100% issue in politics, but this one might be close. https://t.co/l1xR6pXpwQ
— Josh Dawsey (@jdawsey1) November 12, 2025
- Southwest credit card purchases at wholesale club and department stores earn double companion pass points through end of year up to 10,000 points. Registration required.
- GHA Discovery added 12 Hong Kong hotels the Regal and iclub brands. Regal is the preferred hotel for Hong Kong airport stays, even more convenient than the SkyCity Marriott.
- SAS EuroBonus devalues business class awards December 1 so all you folks who went through the effort to fly 15 times and earn 1 million EuroBonus miles…
Au contraire, Gary… (pronounced the French way; with the guttural “r”). These days, in NYC, when using a rideshare, I check, not 2, but 3! apps now, Lyft, Uber, and Blacklane, thanks to that $100 Blacklane credit from Citi Strata Elite (used your link to open, bud!) Lyft is still usually cheapest.
Oh, and your comment about the SAS devaluations was exactly my thought when I first read about it over at LALF. Was like, oof, the 900 or so folks that got their million miles must be upset…
I always compare among Uber, Lyft, Bolt, Grab, Careem as applicable in a market before booking a ride. But there are some situations where a regular taxi can be cheaper than these mentioned app offerings — for example, when I am heading back to CDG after the FT Moderator Do this weekend and have to get back into Paris during rush-hour, a fixed fare regular taxi may be the best value of the choices available to me at CDG.
Uber and Lyft are extremely scammy. Have a credit or promotion? We’ll quote you a higher price!
Starting to feel like everyone would be better off if we use the app to get the driver, then offer the driver to cancel the ride and pay them cash.
@GUWonder — Agreed on fixed-fare taxis in many places ($70-75, JFK-Manhattan has saved me more than a few times.) What’s going on with flyertalk these days?
I was one of the people who got 1 million points from SAS from its million point promo. This devaluation is disappointing, but I anticipated a worse devaluation and this one really does very little (or almost nothing) to dent into my returns from my doing the 1 million point run. I will get my pound of flesh and then some out of SAS anyway via EC 261/2004 claims. 😉
@GUWonder — Epic! My hero! May we please get a US-equivalent? US-261!
I can only hope, 1990. A US-equivalent of EC 261/2004 would be a gold mine for me — better than the game of trying to get bumped from overbooked flights 20-30 years ago. SAS makes it so easy for me. 😀
I have Uber cheaper than Lyft for 90% of my rides, and almost 100% of rides in some cities. That’s without counting the 20% off I get buying Uber gift cards from Costco. After years of checking both, I now often do not bother checking Lyft when the Uber price looks normal.
@GUWonder — As I’ve said many times on here before; we need actual air passenger rights legislation that includes a baseline of compensation for significant delays and cancellations within the airlines’ control, like the EU and UK’s 261 laws, and Canada’s APPR. As you’ve witnessed in Europe, it doesn’t bankrupt airlines (Ryanair still flies those dirt-cheap fares and is EU261-bound). Instead, in the USA, we’re beholden to the abuses of major corporations; we practically give them zero-interest loans by purchasing tickets months in-advance, only for them to have a ‘staffing issue’ and cancel without much notice or recourse. Oh, rebook or refund; no, man, pay me $200-600, and rebook or refund. Watch how fast those incentives create greater reliability, efficiency, and ultimately better companies here, too. And we get paid.
I also check out taking a free hotel shuttle bus to get close to where I am to go. For example, it’s possible to take a free hotel shuttle bus to get close to where a meeting is to be held this weekend. And free beats Uber when the timing is right, right, nsx?
Of course I compare. Uber was twice Lyft for my ride home from the airport on Tuesday. It seems there was a nexus of late, on time, and early flights arriving when I did. I suspect that was the cause. Apparently many just default to Uber, they did a surge price increase, and few checked Lyft. And, of course, I know what the price of a taxi is. Uber was higher than that.
It appears the SW double points promo is targeted.
For me, the Lyft fare has to be more than 20% lower for it to be worthwhile than Uber, because I buy Uber gift cards in bulk from Costco at 80% of face value (also do a lot of Uber eats pickup orders this way)
I typically check Uber first and Lyft second,
Most of the time I use Lyft because my Sapphire Reserve gives me a Lyft discount.
My experience is, in most cities Uber has more cars and than Lyft and Lyft lies.
For example my Lyft app will say your driver will pick you up in 3 minutes which can easily become 9 minutes. Lyft will often overpromise and under deliver.
GUWonder posted good advice above to compare with additional rideshare companies. This can make a big cost difference especially for longer rides during peak times.
Sunday, after an 8 hour delay on a flight from SAT to EWR, I checked both Lyft and Uber for my ride to NYC. Uber was $120 and Lift was $82. Both had wait times.
When Amex first introduced the Uber credit, I routinely saw Uber $10-15 more than Lyft.
OMT, my girl friend found an upgrade from P+ to FC on that UAL NS to EWR for $120. The lowest I saw was $415 and I am Siver and she is not. She sat up front but at least I had an exit row.
@ GUWonder — You obviously place little value on your time if you waste your time stealing a ride on a Free Shuttle Bus that doesn’t go where you need to go.
Between nearly ubiquitous online connectivity and decades of traveling with personal electronic devices for productivity, there is little to no “wasting of time” for me even when “waiting” or “on the go”. And walking a block or some from a hotel to an office building (or other destination) isn’t a bad idea given the health benefits of moving about more with your own feet.
I realize that I’m likely one of the thirty people in the USA who feel this way but I actually like the IAD moon buggies. Do I wish there were moving sidewalks instead? Sure, but the nostalgia is normally pretty cool versus a regular bus.
I’m with Christian, I like the bussy things at IAD. Or at least I like them better than the train. Why isn’t the station of C gates somewhere close to the C gate terminal? At least the bussy things go from where you are to where you want to go.
@Peter — I like ‘bussy things,’ too.