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After growing frustrated by lengthy wait times for rideshare services and expensive fares, Jamin Robertson has started using taxis again.
On a recent Sunday night, Uber quoted him $110 to travel from Melbourne Airport to Port Melbourne, a trip that would normally cost between $60 and $50.
Taxi services are reporting a surge in bookings following the easing of restrictions Credit:Ryan Osland
Mr Roberston resorted to using a taxi instead, which cost $75.
“I used to use both Uber and Didi and went with what was more cost-effective,” he said.
“Now I will be more inclined to phone the operator and book a cab.”
Victorians are flocking back to taxis following the easing of restrictions and amid concerns about the rising cost of rideshare services such as Uber, which attract surge pricing during periods of peak demand.
Many consumers, including Mr Robertson, have noticed that cancellations have become a lot more prevalent on Uber and he suspects drivers are abandoning bookings to chase surge fares.
RMIT senior marketing lecturer Dr Torgier Aleti said consumers were growing tired of surge pricing and taxis were regaining many of the customers they had previously lost to the popular rideshare app.
“Uber prices change at any given time and you have to keep checking it to see if you get a better deal,” he said. “It can be very tiresome and it doesn’t give you a good user experience.”
There was an exodus of taxi customers, and great resistance from the taxi industry, when Uber launched in Australia in October 2012.
But Dr Aleti said taxi services had caught up with Uber in terms of the convenience of their apps, which allowed customers to make bookings on the go, connect their profile to a credit card so they can walk out of a taxi at the end of a trip.
Stuart Overell, the chief operating officer of 13cabs, said demand for his taxis had almost doubled during peak hours over the past few months, especially in the CBD.
He said younger passengers who were heading out to events were behind the spike in bookings. He said many of these customers were previously rideshare users.
“There’s the convenience of walking out and grabbing a cab,” he said.
The spike in demand for private transport services has coincided with a shortage in drivers caused by workers returning to their overseas homes during the pandemic and international student numbers dwindling.
While Uber has said the number of drivers using its app in Australia has not changed during the pandemic, the international rideshare company has warned of a lack of drivers in Britain.
Mr Overell said 13cabs is trying to recruit an additional 4000 drivers to meet demand across Australia.
A spokeswoman for Uber said the company was also experiencing a “huge spike” in demand but would not share any data on this, saying it was “commercially sensitive”.
Unlike taxis, when there is high demand for Ubers in certain areas and not enough cars on the road, fares are increased for consumers through surge pricing.
“We’re conscious of the impact this increased demand has on the rider experience, and we’re doing more to make sure the platform meets rider expectations, including actively sharing with driver-partners the peak times for demand and thus earnings in their cities,” the spokeswoman said.
While the spokeswoman said there had been no pricing changes during the pandemic, The Age has come across many incidents were consumers have been charged or quoted exorbitant fares.
One customer was quoted $242 for a trip from Melbourne’s CBD to the south-eastern suburbs
In one recent case, a Melbourne woman was going to be charged $242 to travel from Collins Street to Carrum Downs during work hours on a Sunday afternoon.
Victorian Taxi Association president Stephen Armstrong said while airport trips were still down due to people holidaying locally, drivers were rejoicing the return of customers. He said many were former rideshare users who had complained about increased costs.
“Our workload is coming back,” said Mr Armstrong, who is also the chair of Ballarat Taxis.
Sam Hipsz has been driving a taxi for 13cab for more than three years and mainly operates across Melbourne’s CBD and the south-eastern suburbs.
“Since restrictions were lifted more people are out and about, either going to work or a party, which is great to see,” he said.
In 2019, Uber overtook taxis as the preferred private transport service of Australians, according to research by Roy Morgan. About 22.9 per cent of Australians aged over 14 used Uber, compared with 21.8 per cent who used taxis.
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