Updated March 16, 2022 at 12:59 PM ET
Uber and Lyft customers are paying a bit more for rides this week, as both companies have announced they're adding a temporary surcharge to deal with the rise in gas prices nationwide.
In a company blog post Wednesday, Lyft said that starting next week the company will add a 55-cent fuel surcharge to each ride for at least the next 60 days. All the money from that will go directly to its drivers.
"This will help offset fuel costs, which also helps more drivers stay on the road," Lyft said.
Lyft's move follows a similar one by the biggest competing ride-share service, Uber, which announced last week it would add a surcharge on Uber trips and Uber Eats orders for the next 60 days. After that the company will reassess its plan.
"We know that prices have been going up across the economy, so we've done our best to help drivers and couriers without placing too much additional burden on consumers," Uber said in a statement.
Uber customers will pay a surcharge of either $0.45 or $0.55 on each trip, while Uber Eats deliveries will include a charge of $0.35 or $0.45 on each order, depending on their location. Drivers will receive 100% of that money directly, the company said.
Uber's surcharge will not apply to rides that begin in New York City or Uber Eats deliveries within the city's limits because drivers there received a 5.3% increase to the city's minimum earnings standard this month.
News of the additional fees for ride-shares comes in response to the increase in gas prices nationwide following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
After cresting above $123 per barrel, the price of crude oil has gradually fallen below $110. If this trend holds, it may remove some of the extreme upward price pressure consumers have found at the pump, but not all. https://t.co/T7lQl31xZx pic.twitter.com/t7bJC5G7zI
— AAA Mid-Atl VA News (@AAAVANews) March 14, 2022
As of Wednesday, the average cost of a gallon of regular fuel had reached $4.305, according to AAA. Around this time last year, the average price was $2.873 per gallon.
Last week, President Biden announced a ban on all U.S. imports of Russian oil and gas and acknowledged that the move could drive crude and gas prices higher nationwide. The president pledged to do everything in his power to not have the rise in gas prices impact Americans and their wallets.
"Defending freedom is going to cost," Biden acknowledged, however. "It's going to cost us as well in the United States."
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