The price of Uber and Lyft rides has increased due to a massive shortage of drivers

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In the United States, the pandemic seems to finally be subsiding. Businesses are opening back up and more people are leaving their houses regularly again. Ridesharing programs like Uber and Lyft are playing a huge part in this, as people begin using the services again. However, you may be surprised at how expensive ridesharing platforms have become.

Both Uber and Lyft have had an incredibly difficult time keeping up with demand in recent months. As more and more people begin to use the services regularly again, it has become near impossible to have enough drivers to keep up with demand. There just aren’t enough drivers available.

According to The New York Times, rides on these platforms were up around 40% in the months of March and April, compared to the same time in 2020. Like many industries, Uber and Lyft are having a hard time finding workers to fill vacancies. Unlike other industries, however, these companies are able to push extra costs straight to the customer.

Uber and Lyft are both working hard to get back on track

Because of the lack of available drivers, Uber and Lyft have offered extra incentives to lure drivers to their platforms. Uber has pledged $250 million towards driver incentives. The article mentioned above says Lyft has already spent about $100 million on driver incentives in 2021 alone.

READ MORE: Did Uber really use surge pricing after the Brooklyn shooting?

Despite these incentives, both Uber and Lyft have seen incredible surge pricing in 2021. There is some good news, however. An Uber spokesperson said that 100,000 more drivers have come back to the platform in the last 4 weeks in the article mentioned above. Because of this, surge pricing is beginning to go back down slowly after its peak in March.

Uber and Lyft, like most other industries at this time, are struggling with a lack of employees. Despite massive incentives from both companies, this has caused a surge in pricing to levels never before seen. Fortunately, it looks like the companies may be back closer to normal soon.

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