Annoying Uber move you won’t see again

Uber has vowed to limit surge pricing during major public transport disruptions in NSW after it was accused of price gouging during a network shut down Sydney’s train system.

While commuters were left stranded at stations during peak hour due to a digital hardware fault, Uber customers reported fares hundreds of dollars above normal prices.

In response, the ride share giant apologised for the inflated fares. The company said it had not been informed of the outage by Transport for NSW; however, immediately lowered capped prices once told. Riders charged above the surge cap were also refunded within 48 hours.

Now, the Australia-first agreement means the rideshare app will be able to access the Transport Management Centre’s incident response process during unplanned incidents. Surge pricing will then be capped at two times the rate of normal fares until alternative public transport options are in place or when demand decreases.

Uber said the price caps were first put in place during the Surry Hills building inferno last Thursday, which impacted light rail services between Circular Quay and Moore Park.

Transport Minister Jo Haylen says the government reached out to Uber after the March train chaos.

“That will mean that instead of an algorithm or a computer, deciding that prices should go up and up, there will be human intervention to make sure that passengers are protected,” she said.

“In March thousands of passengers were left stranded and they faced exorbitant fares. That‘s not fair on them, and that’s why we’ve acted.”

Ms Haylen also almost guaranteed further unplanned incidents on Sydney’s heavy rail network, with the government promising a maintenance blitz after a backlog of projects due to Covid, natural disasters and industrial action in 2021.

“There will be continued incidents across Sydney transit network. We know that,” she said.

“The (Sydney train review) showed that if we don’t intervene when it comes to increasing maintenance and repairing the damage left by the former government, incidents will increase both in frequency and severity.”

Uber and Transport NSW have also proposed measures where Uber drivers will be issued immediate notifications during public transport outages.

Uber ANZ general manager Dom Taylor welcomed the collaboration with the state government.

“Over the past decade, Uber has become an integral part of the NSW transport network, and residents rely on our platform for convenient, safe rides every day,” he said.

“Especially when there are significant disruptions in the transport network, Uber is an important safety net that helps get people where they need to be.

“We’re excited to deepen our partnership with the NSW Government and take steps that will work to the benefit of residents across the state.”