Three months ago, just as Uber competitor, Little entered into the Kenyan ride-hailing space, the company slashed its prices by 35% to add value for riders and provide unique opportunities for its drivers. The ride-hailing service has now announced that the price cut is working. According to Uber, there’s been a boost in driver-partner earnings and a reduction in hours worked to earn the same as before.
So far, there’s been a 100% increase in the number of trips requested from first time users while driver-partners complete over 70% more trips per day. The company has also reported that drivers are spending fewer hours on the road to earn the same as before.
Hundreds of drivers went on strike in August to protest the price slash but it seems the story has changed now. “Business has been good actually, I can’t complain. Since the cut, it has picked up. Before, you had to wait a while to get a trip, but now, it is continuous. There is more frequency of trips so I am actually making more than before,” states Peter, a driver-partner in Nairobi.
Uber is also entering into new partnerships to provide extra benefits for its driver-partners. It has partnered with Sidain Bank to provide loans of up to 1.5 million Kenyan shillings to qualifying driver partners to enable them access vehicle financing. It has also partnered with Total petrol station for driver-partners to get KSH 3.50 off every litre of petrol they purchase. Driver-partners also get to service and wash their vehicles at a discounted rate.
Uber says it is “continuously watching and reviewing the effects of the price cut and we are thrilled that the results show that the price cut is working.”
