How to Choose a Driver: Reviews, Ratings and Profile Details

On a shared ride you are choosing not just a time and a price, but the person you will spend several hours with in one car. This is especially noticeable on long mountain routes like Tashkent — Andijan: about 350 to 370 km, 5 to 6 hours on the road and the winding Kamchik pass. Here the driver's experience and care directly affect your comfort and peace of mind. Let's look at how to choose a driver deliberately.

The profile: first impressions

Open the driver's profile and go through the basics:

• Photo. A real photo of a face, rather than a picture or a blank, shows the person is not hiding.
• Name. A full, clear name.
• Car details. Make, model and colour. They help you find the car at the pick-up point and tell you how much space there will be in the cabin and the boot.
• Sign-up date and number of trips. The longer someone has used the service and the more completed trips they have, the more is known about them.
• Verified details. On Yo'ldosh driver profiles are checked, so look for the verification marks.

An incomplete profile does not mean someone is a bad driver; they may simply be new. But for a first trip on a demanding route, it is better to choose a driver with a track record.

The rating: how to read it

The average score is a useful guide, but you need to read it together with the number of reviews:

• a high rating with many reviews is the most reliable signal;
• a high rating with two or three reviews is a good start, but there is not much data yet;
• a rating noticeably below average is a reason to read carefully why people marked it down.

Do not reject a driver over one low score among many good ones: sometimes passengers lower the score for things outside the driver's control, such as traffic jams.

Reviews: reading between the lines

The text of the reviews tells you more than the stars. Look for recurring themes.

Good signs:

• "left on time", "dropped me exactly where I needed";
• "drove carefully over the pass", "calm driving";
• "clean car", "the air conditioning worked";
• "helped with the luggage", "waited until I got there".

Warning signs:

• several mentions of being late or long waits for other passengers;
• "drove too fast", "overtook on the hairpins", "talked on the phone while driving";
• the price changing during the trip compared with what was listed;
• smoking in the car without the passengers' agreement.

One negative review may be a one-off, but a recurring complaint is a pattern.

The trip description

Good drivers put useful details in the trip description: exactly where the pick-up is, whether there will be a lunch stop, how much luggage you can bring, whether they drop people off along the way. A detailed description usually shows that the driver takes their passengers seriously.

On the route to Andijan, check whether the description lists the towns the car passes through. That helps if you need to get out along the way, for example in Kokand or Margilan.

Questions to ask in the chat

Before booking or straight after, message the driver. Polite questions are normal practice:

1. Where exactly is the pick-up and what time do we leave?
2. How many stops are there along the way and roughly when do we arrive?
3. Is there enough room for my luggage?
4. How many passengers have already booked?
5. Does the car have air conditioning or heating, depending on the season?

Also notice the style of the replies. A driver who answers quickly and politely usually behaves the same way on the road.

What is special about a mountain route

On the Tashkent to Andijan route the road crosses the Kamchik pass, which rises above 2,200 metres. What matters for a passenger:

• an experienced driver who travels this route regularly knows the hairpins and does not rush;
• in winter the car should have suitable tyres, and you can ask about this;
• it can be cool on the pass even in summer, and in winter there is snow, so bring warm clothes;
• if you get car sick, ask for the front seat in advance.

Table: what to check first

After the trip: your review

The review system only works if people use it. Write a couple of sentences that matter: was it on time, how was the driving, was it comfortable. If something went wrong, describe it calmly and specifically, which helps both other passengers and the driver.

In short

Choose a driver based on a combination of signs: a complete profile, a trip history, a rating with a decent number of reviews, what the reviews actually say and the way they communicate in the chat. Find a trusted driver on the Tashkent — Andijan route, browse other routes, and find more useful tips on the for passengers page.

Cover photo: ShShShDDD, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons.