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Honolulu Lawmakers Pass 'Surge Pricing' Cap For Ride-Hailing Companies (reuters.com)

Posted by msmash on from the speed-limit dept.

Honolulu could become the first U.S. city to limit fares ride-hailing companies can charge when demand spikes, following a city council vote on Wednesday, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser newspaper reported. From a report: Ride-hailing companies such as Uber and Lyft use a model known as "surge pricing" in which the fare for a ride rises when factors such as rush hour and bad weather increase demand for the service. The practice could be limited in the future in Hawaii's largest city after the Honolulu City Council approved by a 6-3 vote a bill requiring city officials to cap surge pricing by ride-hailing companies, the newspaper reported. For the bill to become law, however, it still needs to be signed by the Mayor Kirk Caldwell, whose administration appears to oppose the measure, Hawaiinewsnow.com reported.

9 of 105 comments (clear)

  1. Supply and demand by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Let's repeal that pesky law of supply and demand.

    1. Re: Supply and demand by saloomy · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Any economist worth his salt knows how to create a shortage. Fix prices. If you cap surge prices, drivers won't want to deal with all the drunks at 2 am or after the game lets out. This will result in a shortage of drivers. Sure, some people would be happy to pay them more so they could have the convenience, but the government won't let them. Shitty....

    2. Re: Supply and demand by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Insightful

      Would you rather pay $50 or not have a ride available?

    3. Re: Supply and demand by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Insightful

      This is like history repeating itself. It's like people never learn from past mistakes.

      Taxis have to have their prices clearly posted exactly because price gouging became a thing on the early days. I really don't understand how the new taxi companies do not have to do the same. I guess the qualifier "done over the internet" makes it all different.

    4. Re: Supply and demand by cayenne8 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I live in cleveland. After the parade for the Cavs after they first one the championship a trip that would cost $10 was $50

      I've seen this happen from time to time here in New Orleans.

      There's always something going on here, but I don't see it as a big deal.

      I've been dining and drinking downtown and was about to leave, when I see surge pricing on Uber....last time a concert had let out of the superdome I think.

      no big deal, I just sat down back and the bar and met folks, hung out, etc....generally had fun and waited 15-20 min or so, and surge pricing went back to normal again and I was on my way.

      I figure that's the "price" you pay for not driving your own car and have to wait from time to time for someone else to do it at the price I want.

      --
      Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
  2. Re:Great experiment! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Insightful

    I for one hope it passes. I'm sure there are many people out there who can theorize what such a cap would do, but nothing beats real world data. So, if it passes, a few years from now if some other city tries to pass such a measure, there will be data to show what actually happened, so people won't end up being labeled as haters for arguing for or against such a law.

    BWAAA HAAA HAAAA!!!!

    As if.

    We have multiple instances of minimum wage laws correlating with putting low-skill workers out of work.

    Yet anyone here espousing opinions that minimum wage laws help to entrench poverty are routinely attacked as haters and/or RAAACIS'!!!!

    Because when you can't argue logically, you go into cry-bully mode and call people names.

  3. Re:Sad by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    the people will just go to regular taxis instead. that's who pushes bills like this in the first place.

  4. Re:Great experiment! by Uberbah · · Score: 1, Insightful

    We have multiple instances of minimum wage laws correlating with putting low-skill workers out of work.

    If by "many" you mean "not one", then yes. Minimum wage increases are a job booster because it gives low wage workers more money to spend, which creates demand. As demand is what creates jobs (not the rich, not capitalism, not tax cuts) you see more employment, not less. Your uniquely American "losses" come from the fact that people don't need to have three jobs as a wage slave to keep a roof over their heads.

  5. Re:It will be interesting to see what happens by Uberbah · · Score: 1, Insightful

    I think you need to examine this a little more carefully. The devil's in the details and people who advocate economic controls for social policies tend not to think much further than their pre-desired outcome and don't consider all of potential side effects.

    Economic controls from a corrupt AF corporation vs controls from citizens is indeed a no-brainer, just not in the direction you may have been led to by years of capitalist indoctrination.

    You can't make drivers work for $0

    Good thing no one is proposing that.

    Third, to what extend to pre-planned major events even causing large spikes? If I'm a driver, I already know that when a game lets out that more people will need a ride, so I'm more likely to want to work when I know there's more demand.

    As to Rei's point, it was about people choosing to drink and drive rather than pay a higher fare to get home. Every Uber driver in the city could be parked outside a stadium when a game or concert is ending, and it wouldn't factor into that pricing decision.