Uber warns of higher prices and longer wait times following Toronto’s decision to freeze new licences for ride-hailing firms
Uber Technologies Inc says it will price new customers higher than existing ones after the city of Toronto lifted a moratorium on new ride-hailing licences.
In an email, Uber said, “Our prices will increase for customers using the Uber app between 19 January to 7 February, while providing full refunds to customers who pay in full for their Uber journeys.”
The city’s decision to lift its two-year moratorium on ride-hailing licences comes amid an investigation into Uber, following a series of high-profile crashes that have exposed passengers as passengers in their own vehicles.
The City of Toronto says the move to increase prices and slow down service came after the ride-hailing operator failed to meet its own standards, despite having the necessary legal permits required for ride-hailing in Toronto.
Uber says it will not charge higher prices or alter the timeline of service for current customers following the City of Toronto’s decision to suspend new licences for ride-hailing firms.
The surge in popularity of app-based companies like Uber and Lyft and their drivers has created tension between the two companies.
It’s the same tension the city was anticipating two years ago when it launched a review of ride-hailing in a bid to regulate its market and protect people on the street.
Uber says its pricing increases were intended to help customers who were “dramatically increasing their trip lengths.”
The New York office of the American Civil Liberties Union has said it will file a complaint about Uber’s pricing changes with the city’s human rights commissioner.
Uber, along with Lyft, has said it will not charge more than $5 per ride.
Toronto is the largest city in North America without a ride-hailing ban.
The city’s decision to lift its moratorium on ride-hailing licences comes months after the city launched a review into ride-hailing after two Uber drivers were killed in traffic, while taking rides that would have paid about $200.5 in total, according to city data.
The investigation found Uber failed multiple safety and privacy standards, including improperly accessing or sharing the
