A Possible Uber Discount

I have been using Uber to get from my office to the San Francisco Airport recently and have noticed a steady increase in cost for the same distance. It has gotten to the point of me looking at other alternatives and today that may have worked in my favor.

Last week I used Uber to get to the airport and my cost was either $20 for Uber Pool (shared ride with other people) or $25 for Uber X (direct non-stop by myself). This is consistent with costs for the past few weeks. In going through my receipt, I noticed a $7 surcharge because of the airport. I know that there is a BART train that is non-stop and leaves from the Millbrae station, which is close to the airport. The cost is only $5 and so I checked to see how much Uber would cost just to get to Millbrae. When I saw the cost at only $10 for Uber Pool, I thought I would do that this evening. Just to make sure I did a fair comparison, I checked how much it would cost to the airport. Instead of $20, the cost came up at only $15 and so I booked Uber. After all, it saved me from having a train transfer.

While going through the airport security I thought about it and wonder if the programmers at Uber recognize when customers are trying to save money. If I was a developer looking for ways to differentiate my rideshare application from others, I would look for little nuances like that.

Anyone that has used Uber for any amount of time know that there are a number of factors that determine pricing. Ever try to hail an Uber or Lyft after a concert? It is really expensive unless you can get a fair distance from the concert venue. It could be that my reduction in price today is reflective of a number of other factors and I just got lucky. Fortunately I will have many more opportunities in the near future to test out my hypothesis. I'll be sure to keep you posted.