If you’ve noticed your Lyft and/or Uber rides have been higher than usual this weekend, that’s because they are.
With the new minimum wage requirements in New York, rides-share services are increasing their prices to meet these changes. Uber announced on Friday, February 1, that they’d be increasing ride prices based on time and distance, effective immediately.
Lyft emailed their users on Friday as well, saying:
This month, Lyft will implement a pricing change in New York City to reflect two requirements mandated by New York State and the Taxi & Limousine Commission (TLC)…
…New York State is implementing a congestion surcharge for all rides that begin, end, or enter Manhattan, south of 96th street.
That means you’ll pay a little extra when you ride through the city’s most congested areas. Your surcharge will go directly to the state to support public transportation. It won’t go to drivers or to Lyft. The amount will show up on your ride receipt as Congestion Surcharge.
Surcharge Amounts
Shared rides: $0.75
All other Lyft rides: $2.75
So on top of the minimum wage increases, New York’s new Congestion Surcharge is also putting a strain on ride-share services and their ability to keep rides relatively cheap.
featured image source: unsplash