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Rideshares Are Surging

Rideshares Are Surging

by | Jul 1, 2025 | Buzz, July/August 2025

Rolling the dice on the way home

Promising a sleek new future and boosted safety, rideshares changed how cities move. But lately in Raleigh, booking an Uber or Lyft feels more like a high-stakes gamble—especially if you’re trying to get home from a busy concert, bar or game on a Saturday night. One minute, your ride costs $15; the next, it’s pushing $90. 

On one such Saturday in May, a Raleigh Magazine employee left a country music concert at Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek around 10pm. She pulled up both the Uber and Lyft apps to book a ride home to her house in Raleigh—a 14.3-mile trip.

For a standard-size car, Lyft quoted $13.98 for the ride. But Uber, for the same standard car, quoted $83.95—with a note that read: “It’s busy, fares are a lot higher than usual.”

Uber screenshot
Lyft Screenshot

Naturally, she Lyfted. The driver, who asked to remain anonymous, said she drives for both Uber and Lyft, but prefers the latter. Despite riders paying 5 or 6 times the normal price during busy times, that money isn’t going to the driver, she said.

Known as “surge pricing,” the tactic is meant to match driver supply with rider demand during peak hours. But the giant jump in price is starting to feel less like a supply-and-demand solution and more like price gouging—or straight-up robbery. 

At Lyft, surge pricing is referred to as Prime Time. In an earnings call last August, the company’s CEO David Risher said he’s “opening a can of whoop-ass on Prime Time” and referred to surge pricing as “rideshare’s most hated feature.” 

During the second quarter of 2024, Lyft had worked to decrease the average surge amount added to each ride by 25% and, in turn, saw better conversion rates (read: more people choosing Lyft over Uber). 

Uber hasn’t publicly rolled out the same surge-busting plans as its main competitor, but an Uber spokesperson did tell RM drivers are earning more than ever. “Driver earnings remain strong,” she said. “In times of high demand, drivers are able to earn more on the platform.” The spokesperson did not, however, clarify if that ability to earn more comes from Uber wages or an increase in tips from the riders due to higher ride costs. 

But the bottom line tells the story: Q1 2024 saw Uber’s revenue up 15% year-over-year, Lyft’s up 28%—but Uber still hauled in 693% more overall. And, now, some Raleigh riders are opting for alternative rideshare companies like Wridz and Just Her Rideshare, a Charlotte-based company that prioritizes women’s safety for both drivers and riders that recently rolled out in Raleigh. Unlike Uber and Lyft, the latter does not implement traditional surge pricing. 

“We understand how frustrating and unpredictable that can be for riders,” said CEO Kimberly Evans. “Our pricing model is intentionally designed to be fair and consistent, while still ensuring our women drivers are paid equitably for their time and service.”

So, fair warning: The next time you’re leaving a game at Lenovo Center or a night out on Glenwood South, check your options before settling with the first high-priced ride you see.

BTN

$54B
U.S. rideshare market size

↑$61B
Projected U.S. rideshare market size by 2029

Ridership 2024 Q2
Uber: 156M
Lyft: 23.7M
*Lyft’s North American-only, while Uber rides worldwide.

What the Flux?

What the Flux?

by | Jan 23, 2024 | Buzz, February 2024

Surge pricing is expected to ~surge~ in the restaurant industry.

You may have heard of—or even visited—Berliner Republik in Berlin, a pub boasting a “beer stock exchange” where the price of beer fluctuates based on demand. At this spot, the sky’s the limit for what you might pay to sip a popular brew during peak hours, making seats at the bar a must in the event a “stock market crash” tanks prices for a short period of time. 

The German watering hole attracts tourists from all over the world—and, yet, its concept isn’t all that unique given more and more restaurants have adopted a dynamic pricing model as they contend with the elasticity of demand across the industry. Think of it like Uber surge pricing, but for food and drink—and chances are you’ve experienced it firsthand if you’ve ever been charged more for dinner at 7pm versus 5pm, or paid a fee just to secure a brunch reservation.    

“I think restaurateurs are looking for ways to battle inflation,” says Trophy Brewing co-owner Chris Powers. Not to mention deal with labor shortages, supply chain issues—the list goes on… “The pros are you can steer customers to slower days, and you can make more money at busier times when your restaurant is in demand.”

The dynamic pricing model—which is expected to, well, surge in the coming years—has the potential to help restaurants thrive and maintain some control over their bottom line. “The purchasing aspect of the business we’re in right now is just so up in the air that it really does make sense to look to the future and see what kind of ways you can maximize revenue,” says Union Special owner/baker Andrew Ullom.

Though he’s quick to admit his own restaurant doesn’t have the capacity to set up dynamic pricing given its first-come, first-served system, “I think for restaurants on the reservation model and the dine-in model, it does make sense,” he shares. “At St. Roch or Crawford and Son, I think something like that could take hold. … It’s not a bad idea to take a stab at it.”

The flipside: For consumers already leery of surcharges and the feeling of getting nickeled and dimed to death, the demand-based concept may not take hold. “Guest perception could hurt business,” says Powers, “and dynamic pricing options are an add-on service with some POS.” Ullom notes previous attempts by some to add automatic gratuities or service fees onto tickets in Raleigh—“and that went over like a lead balloon,” he quips.

Ultimately, time will tell if—and when—the trend takes hold locally. As Ullom explains, “Raleigh’s market is still pretty tight-knit and still pretty small. I think everyone right now is doing everything we can to just get folks in the door.”

If it does gain traction, it’s crucial restaurants are upfront with customers about any changes in cost. “I have already heard of other places dipping their toes into it, and I haven’t heard many folks complain about it,” says Powers. “I think transparency of what is happening is very important and can help anyone considering dynamic pricing avoid angering any guests.” We’ll certainly prost to that.