Boston Commuters Outraged Over Uber Price Hike, MBTA Delays
BOSTON (CBS) – Uber is accused of hiking up prices, gouging stranded commuters after a small fire on the MBTA during the Tuesday evening commute.
Some claim the app was charging nearly $100 for a 15 minute ride, a 450% price surge.
Michael Wood has his daily commute from Belmont into Boston and back again down like clockwork. Following his typical Tuesday routine, Wood was heading home from work preparing to ride the Red Line when he learned of a delay over reports of smoke.
"I jumped online and was kind of following the conversation, and saw all of the delays, the crazy delays," Wood said. So, he began searching for a back-up plan. That's when he says he turned to Uber for a ride home.
"There wasn't a delay to wait for a car which was nice, but your eyes kind of go down the screen and you see that $90 pop up and it's just kind of shock," Wood said.
An eight mile commute valued at nearly $100 and that was not a misprint.
Wood says Lyft calculated a similar surge price, which sparked uproar from riders on Twitter.
One rider reporting a fare that's usually $5 was $30.
Another claimed it cost $50 to get from Back Bay to Allston.
"I totally understand it's their business model, it makes sense, but it's frustrating as hell for people trying to get home," Wood said.
In a statement, Uber said the price of rides increased due to the demand.
