A Big Change Is Coming to Uber’s Ride-Booking Process

Uber says it’s showing more passengers the cost of a ride upfront, even during times of so-called “surge pricing,” when rides get more expensive amid heightened demand.

The company has previously offered upfront pricing for its carpool-style “UberPOOL” service. But it’s now rolling out the feature to UberX, its taxicab-like offering, to more users.

“Knowing how much a ride will cost in advance is clearly something riders appreciate: today uberPOOL accounts for over 20% of all rides globally,” reads a blog post from Uber. “And we now want more riders globally to benefit from this feature.”

It should be noted that UberPOOL, in which riders share the car with others, is also cheaper than uberX.

The change may make it more difficult for Uber riders to tell if surge pricing is in effect. Instead of a screen showing a surge price multiplier, users will be notified about surge pricing via a message under their fare.