super shuttle of evil

I'm on my flight now, finally... it was touch & go for a while. I had the worst experience ever with Super Shuttle. They were supposed to pick me up at 5:30 for my 8:10 flight. I was ready in time, miraculously, but nothing. At 5:39 I called to see what the holdup was. I was inexplicably on hold for fifteen minutes as I paced around my apartment, heart leaping every time I heard rings, only to be disappointed with crappy Muzak jazz. Finally I got someone who put me on silent hold for another five minutes. She said the driver would be there in seven minutes, so I took half my luggage downstairs. The shuttle was outside! When I had all my things & walked outside, I asked why he didn't call. He said he did but got no answer, which was bullshit because I had reception every step of the way & had missed no calls. Already this is a bad start.

He proceeds to mix up the next pickup address, so we circle around the block & waste more time. Finally he asks, "Everyone going to JFK?" & the girl next to me says, "No, Newark!!!" As we wait for another van to pick her up, the driver refuses to hurry things along by digging her luggage out of the bottom of the pile. He wants to just sit on his ass. Fortunately, in a few minutes the poor girl is en route to the correct destination & we finally get underway. To add insult to injury, the driver is terrible. He lurches & doesn't pay attention, causing several near-collisions & side swipes. I am so frustrated & not zen that I end up just closing my eyes & falling asleep. We get to the terminal with about 10 minutes to spare - not counting walking through traffic ourselves - before the hour cutoff mandated by international travel. The rest of the process went smoothly, though tediously, & I made it on the plane almost at the last minute.

I took Super Shuttle this time because I used Airlink the last three times & they're not very good at picking me up from the airport in a timely manner. However, they rock at getting me there with a minimum of fuss & other passengers (the S.S. van had 8 other people). Airlink was always punctual if not a couple minutes early, & I was either alone or with two people. They're cheaper too - just don't bother reserving a seat on the way back because it'll take as long as if you don't.

I don't know what Super Shuttle's problem was today, but I see no excuse. It's the 20th, not quite crunch time yet, & that driver was utterly incompetent, which calls into question their hiring standards. Barely making it to my plane fifteen minutes before takeoff, partly because I didn't have trouble with security, is entirely too close for comfort. I'm never taking Super Shuttle again.