Uber yields to pressure, hikes fare prices

After months of protracted battles with its drivers, taxi hailing firm Uber has finally agreed to adjust its fares upwards.

This even as the government weighed in on the matter calling for the San Francisco based firm to audit its pricing mechanism after its drivers raised concerns it had resulted in lower earnings.

In new fare structure, Uber has raised the price per kilometer from Sh35 to Sh42 and increasing the minimum fare from Sh200 to Sh300 in Nairobi.

Uber said in a statement the price review is taking into account the recent spike in inflation as well as the rising fuel prices that have led to an increase in operation costs by drivers.

“That is why today we are raising our prices in Kenya. We believe driver-partners will earn more as a result of these changes and that riders will continue to enjoy access to a safe, affordable and reliable service,” Uber said.

The new prices take effect on Thursday.

In the new fare structure, the base fare and charge per kilometer are unchanged at Sh100 and Sh3 respectively.

In Mombasa, the base fare has been hiked to Sh70 while the minimum fare has been increased to Sh200 from Sh150 previously.

Uber has however made no mention on whether it has adjusted its revenue sharing mechanism with drivers.

Uber currently takes 25 percent of earnings made per trip, something the drivers had also asked to be reviewed.

The standoff between drivers and Uber turned chaotic two weeks ago when a section of drivers protesting the 35 percent price cut effected last year by Uber.

The impasse saw the Ministry of Transport, Competition Authority and the Presidential Delivery Unit form a taskforce to try and resolve the matter.

“Riders need safe, reliable transport and drivers need to keep earning. We believe that riders and drivers should have transparency and certainty around prices so that they can make informed choices about when and how they use Uber,” the firm said.