Furious New Yorkers ripped Uber and Lyft on Friday, accusing the “slime ball” ride-share companies of surging prices as heavy rain and flooding pummeled the Big Apple.
As the potent rush-hour rainstorm swamped New York City and shut down large swathes of the subway system, some customers raged on social media that Uber and Lyft prices were soaring well over $100 across the five boroughs.
One Uber user noted the ride-care company was trying to charge her more than $80 to commute 10 minutes to work.
“My daily route to go to work 10-15 minutes away. Due to heavy rain @Uber likes to rob the people of NYC,” she tweeted, alongside a screenshot of the app that warned “fares are a lot higher due to increase demand.”
Another person said their Lyft from Brooklyn to JFK airport was priced at nearly $200.
“It’s raining in NYC, and @lyft from the middle of Brooklyn to JFK is $200, you read that right. Almost as expensive as my flight to San Francisco,” he tweeted.
A 16-mile journey from the Upper West Side to Gravesend, Brooklyn set one Uber rider back a hefty $167. NY Post
The potent rush-hour rainstorm swamped New York City and shutdown large swathes of the subway system. REUTERSMeanwhile, a 16-mile journey from the Upper West Side to Gravesend in Brooklyn set one Uber rider back a hefty $167.
“@lyft your tech company is a bunch of slime balls for including surge pricing on rides when there is a huge flood warning,” another customer tweeted, alongside a screenshot of the app showing the $91 cost of a five mile ride.
And one Uber customer even threatened to delete the app, claiming the company had risen “prices almost times 10.”
One Uber customer threatened to delete the app due to surging prices.
An Uber user noted the ride-care company was trying to charge her more than $80 to commute 10 minutes to work.
Both Uber and Lyft said the prices of rides had been capped in anticipation of the storm, though neither company confirmed what limit had been set.
“In situations like Tropical Storm Ophelia, we evaluate quickly changing weather conditions, along with state or local orders to determine how to proceed regarding Prime Time pricing. In this case, Lyft has taken steps, including capping the amount of Prime Time that can be added to a trip,” Lyft spokesperson said.
“As always, our top priority is to keep drivers and riders safe and we ask any rider to please reach out to our support channels with any issues.”
An Uber spokesperson added: “Surge pricing helps make sure drivers remain on the road when demand is high, but it has also been capped since before the state of emergency was declared.”
Another person said their Lyft from Brooklyn to JFK airport was priced at nearly $200.
Another customer tweeted a screenshot of the Lyft app showing the $91 cost of a five mile ride.
It came as wild scenes of flash flooding unfolded across the city as potent rains tore through the tri-state area — swamping subways and basements and flooding streets and highways.
Up to 5 inches of rain fell in some areas overnight Thursday and as much as 7 inches more was predicted throughout Friday, the National Weather Service said.
Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams both declared states of emergencies — and warned New Yorkers to stay put if possible.
“Count on this for the next 20 hours,” Hochul warned in an interview with NY1.
“We anticipate, we warn, we prepare. But then when it hits and you have 5 inches in the last 12 hours — 3 in the last hour this morning — that’s a scale that we’re not accustomed to dealing with.”
