Some of the company’s drivers, meanwhile, say Uber is squeezing them, saturating the market to the point that it’s impossible for most of them to make a living wage. “They want to own Houston, and they will,” said one driver, who asked not to be identified because she feared the company would disable her account. “But those of us out here, doing the work … we won’t see a dime they don’t want us to have.”
Yet none of the company’s problems — not even the highly publicized case of a driver accused of sexually assaulting a passenger — seems to have dented its popularity. “I use it everywhere,” said Sami Tamska, 30, who moved to Houston last year. “Here, Dallas, whenever I go anywhere. It’s all the same.”
The enthusiasm of customers like Tamska suggests that Uber is here to stay. What remains to be seen is how the rules of the road will evolve for the company and what that will mean for riders.
dug begley 