Careem, the ride-hailing service with presence in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad, has revised its prices.
The move comes in the wake of increased competition between transport apps that are operating in Pakistan, especially with Uber planning to expand its services to other major Pakistani cities and A-Taxi also taking marketshare from the bigger ride services as well.
Here are the new rates from Careem which will be effective from today:
*Figures taken from the Official Careem Facebook Page.
For comparison’s sake, we have also included the old and new rates for economy and business here:
The company is marketing the new revised rates as cheaper than before. But it’s clear that savings are only on longer routes with shorter routes costing more than before.
However, avid users of Careem believe that these revised rates (especially for those using the Economy ride plan) are higher than the previous ones. Their contention is that though the company has revised the per/km rates from before, it has also enhanced the base fare comparatively.
It is an exciting time for startups who are trying to figure out the magic formula for operating a ride-hailing service in Pakistan. The competition is expected to get fierce in the months ahead as Careem, Uber and other local alternatives expand to new destinations.
As you can see from the table above, Careem has raised waiting charges significantly in the revised tariff due to the shortage of rides and captains. The company has its work cut out for them, with a lack of trained personnel and vehicles in recent months affecting their services.
Nonetheless, it is hoped that the rates of ride-sharing apps become competitive and that rides are available for a growing list of customers who prefer the convenience of calling for transport from their smartphones.
Get the latest news, tech updates, telecom insights, and business stories wherever you prefer.
Add ProPakistani to Preferred Sources and see more of our stories in Google Search and Top Stories.