Four Spinoff writers were in an Uber when the driver fell asleep at the wheel. Lyric Waiwiri-Smith recounts their harrowing ride to the airport.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was the snoring that gave it away. The sound could have been mistaken for the hum of the motorway, cars flying at 80km down Auckland\u2019s state highway 16. Or the laughter and gabbing in the back seats, all three of them full. Then I see the way the Uber driver\u2019s hands are only loosely gripping the steering wheel, his head lolling forward, mouth open, eyes closed, foot on the gas.<\/p>\n
My heart stops for a second, then the adrenaline rush of it kicking back into gear helps me move. I roll with my first instinct, which tells me that shocking him out of slumber and hitting him with a \u201cyou good, bro?\u201d is the best course of action. Plus, I think it\u2019s less likely to alarm the other passengers in the back \u2013 my Spinoff colleagues, all out-of-towners like me, trying to get to the airport and get home.<\/p>\n
He startles as I hit him, which gives himself, me and my co-workers a fright. \u201cYeah, yeah, I\u2019m alright,\u201d the driver says, his eyes blinking. I, on the other hand, have never felt less alright in my life. Did that really just happen?<\/p>\n
The author, many months before the Uber ride.<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve got two options here: play it cool and pray we get from A to B safely, or make a fuss and get out of an anxiety-inducing situation. My head races through the pros and cons of each option in rapid time.<\/p>\n
Pro: If I ask the driver to cancel the ride, everyone will get to leave this journey alive.<\/p>\n
Con: But was it all just a trick of my mind? Was he really asleep, or was I being paranoid? He\u2019s awake now \u2013 why make a scene when I can sweep it under the rug and move on?<\/p>\n
Pro: No, no, he was definitely asleep. And if he crashes, he\u2019ll wipe out close to half of The Spinoff\u2019s writers.<\/p>\n
Con: Well, if I cancel the ride, we might miss our flights and I\u2019ll miss question time at parliament. Plus, it\u2019s hardly an easy task to pull over on the motorway.<\/p>\n
Pro: OK, be so for real right now \u2013 what\u2019s a few missed flights compared to a potentially horrific crash?<\/p>\n
Con: But what about the driver? You know what it\u2019s like to show up to work exhausted and force yourself to power through. This guy might be overworked, and he\u2019s awake now. Is a brief mistake worth cancelling, complaining and maybe causing him to lose his job?<\/p>\n
(Photo: Nathan Stirk\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
So, I continue sitting there and let sleeping dogs lie. The eyes in the backseats are fixed on the rear view mirror and they see the driver\u2019s eyes shutting and opening, shutting and opening, flickering like a lamp losing its light. I have my MacBook open on my lap and was focussed on finishing some work, but now my eyes are permanently fixed at three points: the windshield, the steering wheel, and the driver\u2019s face.<\/p>\n
I can\u2019t drive myself, but at least I can do my bit and monitor the road. But that stretch down state highway 16 to the airport feels like the longest 10 minutes of my life. What was an atmosphere of laughter and giddiness is now tense, all of us listening to the driver\u2019s heaving breathing and alert to his sporadic speeding and slowing. I wonder if he\u2019s picking up on the bad vibes too.<\/p>\n
We make it to the airport without any physical damage but with a whole lot of frayed nerves. I let the other passengers get themselves out, kiss the sidewalk and thank God for the miracle of life, and I have a quiet word with the driver. \u201cMate, I think you should pull over and have a rest before you get back out on the road,\u201d I say. His response is weary. \u201cYeah, I need to charge my car around the corner anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n
We\u2019ve made it out alive, and now survivors\u2019 guilt clouds our next decision: do we report the driver to Uber? My colleagues and I all take a few moments to convince ourselves that reporting him is the right thing to do, even though it feels like punishing him. My colleague opens the Uber app, and we\u2019re both surprised to find that \u201cdrowsy driver\u201d is one of the automatic complaint options. How many exhausted Uber drivers and scared riders came before us to necessitate the app having this as an option?<\/p>\n
But, as in any life or death situation, we find the dark humour. If I had died in a crash, the last text I sent (to my colleagues in the back) would have made a great headline when the coroner sifted through the evidence of my death: \u201cI lowkey think this dude just fell asleep.\u201d<\/p>\n
What did Uber do?<\/p>\n
In a statement, Uber told The Spinoff that the safety of its users and drivers is its highest priority. \u201cReports like this are concerning and we do not take it lightly,\u201d their statement read. \u201cAs always, if a rider is concerned about their safety on a trip, we encourage them to report their concerns via the Help section of the Uber app. Alternatively, riders can use our On-Trip Reporting feature to discreetly report non-emergency situations. Uber\u2019s 24\/7 support team will look into the matter and take appropriate actions.\u201d<\/p>\n
After we complained on the Uber app, we never received any response from the company, but Uber did refund the cost of the trip.<\/p>\n