With the introduction of ride-hailing services, the transportation sector has undergone a transformation. It is because the service provides commuters with practical and easily accessible choices. Nonetheless, disputes about inflated prices and surge pricing have frequently come up. Although ride-hailing companies regularly use surge pricing, the size of this price usually raises questions about affordability and transparency.
Since its huge expansion, surge pricing has been a controversial topic for ride-hailing services. While aggregators contend that this helps balance supply and demand, others claim that it results in unjust and inflated prices. Surge pricing is based on sophisticated algorithms that consider variables including strong demand, a shortage of drivers, and traffic congestion. Yet, riders’ annoyance and unhappiness have grown as a result of the algorithms’ lack of transparency.
ADVERTISEMENT
Uber ride are as expensive as flight ticket
Recently, Uber sparked public outcry when it charged a whopping Rs 4,000 fare for on ride in Bengaluru. The ride was between Bengaluru Airport to Electronic City, a distance of approximately 50 kilometers.
While some may occasionally be able to pay such costs, others—particularly those with lower salaries or tourists on a tight budget—might find it to be unaffordable.
In order to highlight the excessive prices charged by the cab aggregator, a screenshot of an expensive Uber travel from Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport to Electronic City went viral. Many were astonished by the rate that was published on the app. UberXL was listed at Rs. 4,051.15, while the lowest fare for Uber Premium was Rs. 2,584.59. And it is only because of a distance of 52 kilometers.
Uber fare to Bangalore Airport from E-City
Cost of cab fare is dangerously close to what I paid for the flight ticket 😭 pic.twitter.com/FUw9jygeMh
— Badass Dad 🚬 🍺 (@Badass_Superdad) May 23, 2023
This significant fare discrepancy compared to flight ticket prices led to public astonishment and criticism. While some users urged authorities to fully ban these ride-hailing services, others criticized them for lesser transparency of surge pricing.
Local government issues notice against Uber
The incident, coupled with long-standing concerns regarding surge pricing in Bengaluru, prompted the government to take action. In response to the incident, the Commissioner for Road Transport and Safety, S N Siddaramappa, directed the Regional Transport Office (RTO) to issue a notice against the cab aggregator company for the gross violation of surge pricing.
ADVERTISEMENT
Speaking to Indian Express, S N Siddaramappa said,
“I am directing the RTO to issue a notice against the aggregator company for the gross violation by imposing surge pricing.”
In Bengaluru, the problem of surge pricing by cab aggregators has long been a source of worry. Although the government has set a fixed fee of ₹75 for small cabs and ₹150 for luxury cabs for the first 4 km, many previous reports have highlighted cases when cab fares surpassed ₹150 for just 2 km.
Due to this, the transportation department has prohibited the use of Uber, Ola, and Rapido in 2022 due to this surge pricing. This most recent event has shown how urgent it is to appropriately confront and control the problem.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
