4 ms·
That’s not exactly how it works. The primary function of surge isn’t to redistribute a fixed pool of drivers - it’s to incentivize additional drivers to go onli
by dpiers 7y ago
That’s not exactly how it works. The primary function of surge isn’t to redistribute a fixed pool of drivers - it’s to incentivize additional drivers to go online in an area with excess demand. For example, it used to be that surge would spike insanely high on big days like Halloween and New Years Eve because demand was drastically higher than supply. Once drivers saw other people making 8-10x surge, more people started signing on at these peak times and average surge went down.
- foogazi 7y agoYes that was part of my thought too In response to a pricing surge I expected more drivers to be incentivized to get out of bed at 11PM and make more money But if that hour of work at 11pm is worth the same as waking up 8 the next day then they lose out on thousands of people willing to pay surge pricing
- TeMPOraL 7y ago> In response to a pricing surge I expected more drivers to be incentivized to get out of bed at 11PM and make more money That's true. But they also may be incentivized by demand surge in itself - when the demand overwhelms supply, they can earn maximum effective hourly rate, which is not the case when the demand is roughly matching the supply. Adding surge pricing on top of that means wealthy people get prioritized, which is a separate effect and one that can be considered a) unfair, and b) disrupting to the regular city life, especially if the attendees of a mass event that caused the demand spike are wealthier on average than the regular citizens.