"Drivers are barely able to make a living". In my unscientific polling of uber drivers the majority are either doing it to pick up some extra money or in between "real" jobs. Few plan on doing it for a living.
I feel like I've noticed a shift in apparent motivation between 2014 and now. I remember a lot of people talking about doing it as a side gig or whatever in the past, but now I hear a lot about drivers working 8+hr shifts, sleeping in their cars between shifts, commuting from 1-3hr away to drive in SF, etc.