Lyft’s new price lock feature locks in the cost of rides, even during peak hours

Lyft is rolling out a new price-lock feature that caps the cost of rides, in an effort to solve the problem of unpredictability of costs for those who rely on the platform for daily commutes. The company says the tool will work even during peak hours, when rides are often more expensive. There are, however, some caveats.

First of all, there is a monthly subscription price required to use this service, although it is only $3 per month. There is also a lack of information about how the cap works. Is it just an average of past rides and doesn’t include higher prices? Is there a limit to how much can be put into the cap? We’ve reached out to Lyft and will update this post if we hear anything back.

One thing is certain. Lyft plans to make this feature a hit. It suggested that passengers would charge 40 per cent more if the price-locking device became commonplace. However, it’s important to note that Lyft is the one that sets the prices in the first place, so it’s caused the instability that this tool aims to solve.

There is also a promotion to advertise how to lock in rates: 100 customers who start new jobs will get a free ride on the “first day”. This will be handled through LinkedIn. Just 100 rides? That seems like a waste for a company as big as Lyft, but what do I know?

This isn’t the first time Lyft has tried its hand at a subscription-based service. The company’s Pink subscription service has been an on/off feature for years. This is more or less a bunch of additions at this point. Pink stopped offering fare discounts but started offering benefits such as free priority pickup and three free cancellations per month. The program is still live, for $10 a month or $100 a year.