If you use Uber often to get around KL, then you’d be delighted to know that it just got cheaper. Uber has revised its uberX prices for this year and they’ll be effective from today.
A ride that would usually take you RM5 from 1Utama to TTDI would now only cost you RM3. Under this price revision, the base fare has been dropped to RM0.95, and you will be consecutively charged RM0.25 per minute and RM0.60 for reach kilometer.
This means that it’s even cheaper to get around KL, and it means that you can sneak out for a quick bite during lunch or to simply run errands.
In a time when prices are continuing to rise, this can greatly help users in Malaysia save a couple of bucks every single day.
While it obviously benefits the riders, it’s a common misconception that cheaper rides often translate into lower incomes for the Uber partners, Uber says otherwise.
They claim that cheaper rides would automatically translate into a higher number of overall trips, as it would reduce the time drivers take to wait for the next rider, and thus increasing the average earnings for each driver.
They’re basing this claim on the success Uber partners recently experienced in New York. Between 2012 and 2015, the prices of Uber in New York fell by almost by 30% and this resulted in an increase of 30% for average partner driver earnings over the same period of time.
After collecting the necessary data to compare prices and average driver earnings over 4 years, they believe that this model can be replicated in Malaysia. Uber mentioned, “With lower prices, the Uber platform simply becomes much more efficient, which means the time spent by partners on the platform becomes much more efficient.”
Ride-sharing services like Uber have become a significant part of the lives of many, and this price reduction empowers both the riders and the partners all at the same time.