How much for a ride?

Here's an interesting (to me, at least) piece from The Pricing Journal on pedicab pricing of all things. After experimenting with a number of different approaches to setting fares, the one described in this article is precisely the one I've settled on -- at least when it comes to rides of 20 minutes or less, which is more than 90 percent of what I do. For longer rides, it's a dollar a minute.

I still improvise occasionally depending on the situation. Last night I had a pair of ladies who wanted a ride to their hotel, which I figured was just at the edge of the 20 minute boundary. It was past 2 AM, things were pretty busy, and I really didn't want to take a chance on going that far away from the action for a meager tip, so I quoted a price of $20. They said, "OK, no thanks then. That's a little high. We'll just take a taxi."

Usually in these situations, I don't mind losing the customer. If she's looking for the least expensive option, she's better off with a conventional taxi. Whenever someone says, "I can get a cab for cheaper," I usually say, "You sure can! Would you like me to hail one for you?" But for some reason, I decided on impulse to gamble this time. "I tell you what," I said. "I'll take you for a tip. You just pay me whatever you like, and that will be fine."

They hesitated briefly. "Whatever we want? Are you sure?" I told them yes, I was sure, and they got on board.

The ride turned out nice. It was a beautiful night with a gentle breeze, and the three of us had a pleasant conversation along the way. It was clear that they were thoroughly enjoying the experience. When we got to their destination, they gave me $30.

"Are you sure this is enough?" they asked, seemingly having forgotten that just 20 minutes earlier, $20 was more than they were willing to pay.

"Yes, that's great," I said. "Thank you!"

"Are you sure?" they asked again.

"Yes, yes I'm sure!"

This kind of thing is fairly common actually. People end up enjoying their pedicab experience so much that they're happy to pay substantially more at the end than they were prepared to pay at the beginning. That's one of the reasons that I'd prefer not to lock them on to a price before they get on board. It's also one of the reasons that I really love my job!