WASHINGTON – Ride sharing services famously settle the bill with customers without any physical currency ever coming out, but starting Sunday, riders may want to look for some loose change.
Trips to and from Dulles International and Reagan National airports will have a $4 “access fee” added to the fare.
The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority approved the new rules last month, impacting companies like Uber and Lyft.
“What this does for consumers is it unfairly inflates the place of a ride,” says Taylor Bennett, a spokesman for Uber.
“We expect that consumers will now pay about 25 percent more for an Uber X trip to Reagan and about 15 percent more for trips to Dulles,” he says.
The $4 access fee is on the high end compared with other airports in the country. Most that do apply a fee to pick-ups do not also have a drop-off fee.
Under MWAA’s new regulations, the airports will get a cut of the popular services’ fares.
The Airports Authority has also said the new structure will help it quantify how much passengers are actually using these services.
The $4 charge will be paid by the riders.
