The rideshare fees passengers pay when going to and from airports are higher than the costs when they hail a ride to the shopping mall, restaurant, or market. This is normal since even taxis and cabs have charged higher fees around airports for several years.
But Uber had its arms up when it found out the rideshare fees to and from Boston Logan Airport would increase by more than $15 for a round trip and $8.25 each way in the next decade or by 2031. The Massachusetts Port Authority spearheaded this move.
For Uber, this is a “blatant cash grab.”
Uber is a popular transportation network passengers use when visiting and leaving the Boston Logan Airport.
The Massachusetts Port Authority is unfazed, and more than willing to give it a go. On February 12th, it presented a graph outlining the rideshare fee increase it plans to implement in 2029. The presentation has shown how the current $3.25 will increase to $5.50 in the next two years, then up again to $7.50 starting in 2027. It will stay at that same rate in 2028, the Olympics year.
But, that’s not it. In fiscal years 2030 and 2032, passengers who hail Uber, Lyft, and other ridesharing platforms around the airport could be spending $23 on a round trip by 2031.
“This is going to be just a massive outlier, and it’s a blatant cash grab,” Josh Gold, Uber’s Senior Director of Public Policy & Communications said with the media on Tuesday. “Our drivers are going to feel it, and our riders are going to feel it, in an era where residents of the Bay State are looking for affordability. This is not the best path forward.”
The Massachusetts Port Authority has confirmed with the Ridesharing Forum team, through its spokeswoman Jennifer Mehigan, that it is voting on this next Thursday, but couldn’t comment further on the matter yet. However, they said they have not raised rideshare app fees in six years, which is seemingly an implication that they should now.
Uber responds to that, saying that the $23 round trip cost is going to be “the highest rideshare fee at any airport in the entire world.”
So far, the highest rideshare fee in the country is for Chicago O’Hare, at $10, followed by round trips in Los Angeles and Dallas-Fort Worth, at $8.
The Massachusetts Port Authority is the port authority for the Massachusetts Commonwealth, owning and operating three airports, the Logan International Airport, the Hanscom Field, and the Worcester Regional Airport, as well as public terminals in the Port of Boston.
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