Fares surge for Uber drivers during festive party season
Auckland driver Graham Maclean said his earnings this month went up by almost 40 per cent compared to the rest of the year, as he took passengers from party to party.
‘‘Drivers don’t have any downtime, it’s just back-to-back rides. And because its so busy, surge pricing comes in more frequently, so you can earn more per ride,’’ Maclean said.
‘‘It’s silly season, there’s lots of work like Christmas parties, people wanting to catch-up with family before the end of the year. It’s cheaper for passengers to use Uber into the city than parking.’’
The 68-year-old said he preferred to work part-time as it gave him the perfect mix of being social with the flexibility to live his life.
Uber’s pricing works by charging riders per kilometre and per minute on top of a base rate of $1.30. But busy times and areas for pick-ups can affect prices. It charged a booking fee of 55 cents, 31c per minute and $1.35 per km.
Uber charged drivers a commission of between 25-to-28 per cent.
When demand peaks because of rush hour, bad weather or special events, fares automatically surge, too, as incentives for more drivers to work to meet demand.
On an average week, Mclean earned about $1400. But about one third of his earnings went into petrol, maintenance and insurance, Maclean said. But with surge pricing he made up to $2000 a week.
Maclean drove about 40 hours a week but his hours varied depending to how much free time he had.
‘‘If I have lots of free time some weeks it can be 50 hours,’’ Maclean said.
‘‘One of the great things about Uber of course is total flexibility. I could decide on any day that I’m going to go away for a month overseas.’’
Maclean, who has been driving for nearly two years, said the spike in earnings stabilised in January.
‘‘But from a driver’s perspective it doesn’t mean it’s that much quieter because there’s a lot less competition from other drivers around.’’
Auckland driver Lynette Dixon said she had also been making more money over November and December.
‘‘I’ve been quite erratic the last few months but despite my hours being fewer, I have been earning the same as working more time,’’ Dixon said.
She said earning more over the past couple of months had been a combination of it being a busy time of year, and more people embracing ride-share.
‘‘Even with going to the shops, passengers don’t have to worry about parking at the malls.
‘‘People prefer Uber to buses.’’ Maclean said Uber’s loyalty programme to incentivise drivers to stay on the app by offering them rewards as well as its new tipping feature had also helped boost earnings.
He said tourists and locals tipped him equally.