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Your Uber ride is getting more expensive

Back in April, Uber announced that it would be dropping its fares in an attempt to get more riders to use the service.

However, the drop in fare pricing spread fear among drivers that they’d earn less money, and many drivers went on strike as a result.

“Lower fares will ultimately get more riders on the road, which means more trips for drivers and an increase in driver-partner earnings,” the firm said in a statement at the time.

But it seems that the drop in pricing didn’t get more riders in cars as the firm has today announced that pricing will be increasing from R6 per km to R7.50 per km, claiming the “experiment” with lower fees was no longer benefiting riders and drivers.

“We promised that if reduced fares didn’t make sense for driver-partners in the long term, we would go back to our original fares,” Uber said in a mail sent out to riders. “Today we are keeping that promise, and from 10am, 6 June, original fares will resume.”

So from today, riders in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban can expect fares for UberX to go back to where they were nearly two months back.

The news that fares will be returning to the previous rate will surely be welcomed by drivers, especially those who spend more money than they earn working with the service.

Uber driver partners continue to face fierce opposition from metered taxi drivers in South Africa, with incidents of violence and intimidation becoming more common.

The announcement that Uber will also start accepting cash payments has lead many to fear that the service is encroaching on the territory of mini-bus taxis and that drivers will become more of a target as they start travelling with large amounts of cash.

We’re curious to find out from you whether the drop in pricing got you into an Uber more often, or if your “Ubering” habits didn’t change. Let us now in the comments or tweet us.

[Source – Uber][Image – CC BY/2.0 Núcleo Editorial]

 

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