Roadie plans on being the Uber of package delivery. Watch out UPS/FedEx?

[JEDI]

http://www.theverge.com/2015/2/24/8098759/waffle-house-roadie-delivery-app-partnership

Roadie, a startup that aims to become the "Uber of package delivery." The app, which launched last month, lets travelers earn money by delivering packages to locations along their routes.

At the moment, users can send packages from within 10 states across the southeast US, and most packages are delivered door to door.
[or to a network of meeting places for users to hand off deliveries.]

Depending on the item, Roadie may be more expensive than FedEx or UPS, but the company says it will be most cost-effective for transporting large packages.


Wonder how does Waffle House make $?
(they are giving drivers a free waffle + drink.)

 

[z1ggy]

more expensive = why would people even bother? Unless it's significantly faster.

 

[dabuddha]

Will they insure the packages as well? Cause I'll be damned if I'm going to trust a complete "stranger" with delivering my package.

 

[AznAnarchy99]

http://money.cnn.com/2014/11/20/news/companies/fedex-driver-lawsuit/

UPS drivers have amazing pay and benefits. They aren't dying soon.

 

[Ns1]

In other news package thefts at roadie are reported to be astronomical.

 

[Newell Steamer]

Sounds like a bad idea.

My personal experience with the FedEx to USPS hand off has been pretty terrible. I can only imagine the horrors that would come out of this one.

 

[balloonshark]

Fedex and UPS have fucked up my deliveries multiple times this year and I live in a small town. A start up couldn't do much worse from where I stand...

 

[Merad]

Yeah, this is going to fail spectacularly. Delivering packages quickly and semi reliably requires massive amounts of infrastructure and planning.

Edit: It might work for specialty items like the massive squirrel painting they show on their website. But then you're going to have a very high risk of theft. And high cost.

 

[Ns1]

Fedex and UPS have fucked up my deliveries multiple times this year and I live in a small town. A start up couldn't do much worse from where I stand...

clearly you have not used Uber. A Roadie might rape your package or something.

 

[zinfamous]

Will they insure the packages as well? Cause I'll be damned if I'm going to trust a complete "stranger" with delivering my package.

How else you expect to transport your brick of weed to grandma without having to worry about UPS driving it straight to Johnny Law?

 

[JEDI]

Sounds like a bad idea.

My personal experience with the FedEx to USPS hand off has been pretty terrible. I can only imagine the horrors that would come out of this one.

esplain

 

[Mixolydian]

lolololol .........

 

[nageov3t]

I could see this working regionally, like for document delivery between companies.

but in any kind of real business transaction, I can't imagine a company willing to hand over their client's products to random, uninsured stranger with a car.

 

[Ns1]

How else you expect to transport your brick of weed to grandma without having to worry about UPS driving it straight to Johnny Law?

Roadie: "Here's your 1.3 pounds of marijuana"
Grandma: "But there was supposed to be a kilo"
Roadie: "It was a long drive"

 

[rudder]

tracking package:

Last scan: Your package is sitting at the west side motel while the delivery guy decided to call up an old girlfriend. Delivery should resume in two days.

 

[zinfamous]

Roadie: "Here's your 1.3 pounds of marijuana"
Grandma: "But there was supposed to be a kilo"
Roadie: "It was a long drive"

still better than some smokies and a tank showing up at your house the next day.

 

[cbrunny]

http://money.cnn.com/2014/11/20/news/companies/fedex-driver-lawsuit/

UPS drivers have amazing pay and benefits. They aren't dying soon.

Woah, amazing. How has this not been more widely spread?

 

[holden j caufield]

hasn't this been done with the show shipping wars.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Isn't this kind of already how courier companies work? (Quicksilveror Dynamex around here.)

 

[mmntech]

Freelance couriers are nothing new. There's hoards of them in downtown Toronto. When my parents had their construction business, their bonding company had one of those guys. Used to show up to the office in this beat up old car.

I'm guessing the costs are higher for small items like letters. It's cheaper to mail those in bulk.

As someone who spent three years as a shuttle driver, I have no idea why anybody would voluntarily want to drive people or things around. At least not unless you're desperate for work. It's a surprisingly stressful job. I used to tell people: hate your commute in heavy rush hour traffic? Try doing that all day. Plus throw in someone who's backtalking you because they got shitty service at the front desk.

 

[Markbnj]

Nothing wrong with trying to disrupt that business, but UPS/FedEx are not just about package delivery. They're global logistics companies with massive infrastructure. Maybe Roadie can carve out a piece of it.

 

[chowderhead]

I could see this working regionally, like for document delivery between companies.

but in any kind of real business transaction, I can't imagine a company willing to hand over their client's products to random, uninsured stranger with a car.

yeah bike messengers.

I actually thought shoprunner (i.e. uber for deliveries) was something like this when it first started.

 

[Belegost]

I can see the use of this, I recall when my ex left and moved across the country she left a box of books (about 24x24x18 and 80lbs) behind. Then a month later is calling me 3x/week asking me to ship them. The Fedex/UPS/DHL were astronomical to ship it, and freight lines don't want to deal with 1 box.

I eventually found someone who was driving that way and paid them $50 to drop it off - Roadie seems to be trying to help setup that arrangement more frequently.

 

[Red Squirrel]

...and the government will just make it illegal like they did with Uber. Interesting idea though.

 

[Blitzvogel]

Roadie: "Here's your 1.3 pounds of marijuana"
Grandma: "But there was supposed to be a kilo"
Roadie: "It was a long drive"

I'd hate to think how many people could be convinced that a kilogram is less than a pound.:sneaky: