Could the third Uber fare rise in the last six months see price battle diminish?

There is growing optimism within the London taxi industry that a third Uber price hike within the space of six months could signal the start of the end to a long running price battle in the capital. The ride-hailing service announced during the week that they are to add a pound to the cost of every journey in central London as the minicab drivers exemption from the congestion charge is set to be discontinued. As of Monday 8th April all private hire drivers entering central London during daytime weekday’s must now pay £11.50. This latest price increase follows an extra fifteen percent placed on all peak weekend journeys in the capital back in November 2018. Peak fares include journeys made on Thursday’s through to Sunday between 10pm and 6am. The price per a mile moved from £1.25 up to £1.45, and also increased 5p per minute, from £0.15 to £0.20, for each journey. These fees will rise further if surge pricing is applied during peak and busy periods.

There was also a third price hike announced at the turn of the year labelled as a “Clean Air Fee”. On 16th January a further 15p per mile was included on every trip taken through the app in London. The levy was claimed to be used as a tool for drivers looking to upgrade their vehicles to emission free electric vehicles.
Currently a fare from St Paul’s to Islington on a Saturday afternoon is estimated to cost between £7-8 for an UberX and £7-9 for a taxi on the Gett platform. These estimates do not include the new Congestion Charge fee to be added by Uber next week. Whilst no further increases in price have been announced Uber continue to lose money each quarter. The San-Francisco based company lost $1.07billion for the three months ending 30th September 2018 according to Reuters.
Uber Phone Image: TaxiPoint