# New Surge Policy. Any Experience With It?



## DrivenToDistraction (Sep 3, 2015)

Uber has just instituted a new surge policy for Chicago drivers. _No more multiplier_. Instead the app shows you a flat bonus you'll get on your next ride. No matter what the distance or time.

Supposedly surges are going to last longer, giving you more time to drive to them, and once you've driven through an area with a surge, you'll get that bonus even if you subsequently drive into an area with a lower surge bonus. Might be good.

BUT, I think the new policy is going to suck. Let's say I'm in the city during evening rush and the app tells me that if I'm in the surge area and stay online I'll get a $3.00 bonus on my next ride. And I pick up a pax who's just going a short distance. Under non-surge pricing maybe I'd make $5.00. So a $3.00 bonus on top of that is pretty good. Eight bucks instead of five. In effect I'm getting paid 1.6 X the normal rate.

But let's suppose instead of a short trip, I get somebody going to the airport. Now during evening rush that could easily put $30 in my pocket under normal pricing because of the traffic. But evening rush in the city is almost always surging. _Under the old system I'd get paid anywhere from 1.2 X to 2.4 X._

A thirty dollar ride to the airport at that time of day, with a 1.5 X multiplier would give me $45.00. An extra *fifteen dollars*.

But instead, under the new system, I'm going to tie myself up on a long trip and make an extra *three bucks* on what would be a thirty dollar ride under non-surge pricing. Or in other words, I'll get 1.1 X on the trip. And I know there's no freaking way Uber is ever going to promise me a $15.00 surge bonus on my next ride, because the odds are the ride itself will cost less than that.

I know Uber has trotted out this system in other markets, and _I'd love to hear from drivers who have worked under this new system._


----------



## Uber's Guber (Oct 22, 2017)

Whatever the new policy is, it always means less money for the driver.


----------



## dryverjohn (Jun 3, 2018)

Read up on the Charlotte surge, and recently Boston. There have been some tweaks in the CLT market at least. I am not as angry as I previously was. Yesterday was a prime example. Friday, traffic everywhere, Trump is in town. Beginning of college football. First ride is a $4 surge 1 mile away, I take the ride and passenger wants to go 22 miles away. He is going to an area on the other side of town. I ended up with $35 and the passenger paid $52, not bad compared to the old system where I would have received base fare + $4. On the other hand, bars closed same night and I turned on my DF and took pax home. $7 surge 17 mile trip and I received base fare plus the $7. On this one I believe the flat rate surge is capped, because I was using a destination filter. I did not want to go 30 minutes on the other side of town. It worked out as I picked up a $7.50 surge at 3am for a delivery from a McDonalds that was located at my exit and on the way home. $11.19 for taking McDonalds 2 miles ain't bad.


----------



## DrivenToDistraction (Sep 3, 2015)

I’ll gladly give up the chance to make an extra three bucks on a four dollar ride in exchange for NOT getting a lousy three dollars on an airport ride that would have given me an extra twelve bucks at 1.5X


----------



## Mista T (Aug 16, 2017)

DrivenToDistraction said:


> I think the new policy is going to suck


Uber makes a change that involves your money = 100% chance it will suck for you.

Uber still pays surges in my city, however Lyft has switched to flat dollar here. In the last 2 months my Lyft rides have dropped by about 50%. If Uber is surging, Lyft is turned off, plain and simple.


----------



## Emp9 (Apr 9, 2015)

yes , other than saving the low $ surge amount. it really sucks for med and long rides. garbage and i wont move 1 inch to get it.


----------



## DrivenToDistraction (Sep 3, 2015)

Mista T said:


> Uber makes a change that involves your money = 100% chance it will suck for you.
> 
> Uber still pays surges in my city, however Lyft has switched to flat dollar here. In the last 2 months my Lyft rides have dropped by about 50%. If Uber is surging, Lyft is turned off, plain and simple.


For me it's been exactly the opposite, so far. If Lyft is surging (of Primetiming) off goes Uber. But if Lyft Chicago switches to flat rate (which I've little doubt they will do) then I'm really screwed.


----------

