‘Terrifying’: Phoenix Uber Driver Tells Riders That He’s ‘Having a Bad Day, So Everybody’s Gonna Have a Bad Day’
Like many others after nighttime outings, she thought she was just catching a reliable Uber home in Phoenix, Arizona. Minutes into the ride, that thought vanished, replaced with pure terror. The driver swerved dangerously, ignored repeated requests to stop, and nearly clipped walls and guardrails as Yuki Momohara and her boyfriend frantically tried to get out.
Momohara hit record, capturing the chaos as she and her boyfriend shouted directions and pleaded with the Uber driver
“Stop the car! Hit the brakes!” she yells in the video. He kept pushing forward, veering left and right, brushing past guardrails and exits, leaving the couple fearing for their lives amid Phoenix’s after-hours downtown traffic.
Only after repeated confrontations did the driver finally stop, and not without threatening her boyfriend with physical violence, saying, “I’m having a bad day, so everybody’s gonna have a bad day,” before speeding off.
They landed back about 40 miles away from their intended destination.
The story didn’t end there. According to Fox 10 Phoenix, moments later, Eva Carlson got into a ride with the same Uber driver.
She described a similar experience: excessive speed, ignored stop and yield signs, and multiple instructions to exit ignored. Carlson said she finally managed to get out after the driver veered across three lanes.
Only afterward did she learn about Momohara’s incident, connecting the dots and realizing this wasn’t an isolated scare.
Both passengers reported the incidents to Uber
The company eventually deactivated the driver but hasn’t fully explained how he could accept rides after the initial police report.
Uber highlighted in-app safety tools, including GPS tracking, a panic button, and “live help,” but the gap in immediate intervention raises questions about monitoring and response times.
Phoenix police recommend riders call 911 in any situation where they feel threatened and to use the safety features built into rideshare apps. Those tools might have helped the victims above, and thank goodness they’re safe, but the thought of being trapped with a reckless Uber driver sure lingers.
