At the end of 2021, the average cost of a taxi ride in Russia increased by almost a quarter, according to research data. The most expensive average check was recorded in St. Petersburg. Rising prices do not offset increased costs, industry officials warn. The cost of transportation is most dependent on car prices, which have risen significantly in the past year, experts explain. The average check for a taxi ride in Russia in 2021 increased by 23%, to 305 rubles compared to 2020, according to a study by Russian Standard Bank provided by .
As part of the study, the bank's specialists studied all transactions with cards issued by Russian Standard for 2021 and 2020 in the corresponding category of transactions.
In addition to Moscow and St. Petersburg, most of the trips by taxi with payment by bank cards were made in Chelyabinsk, Yekaterinburg and Perm. The average check for a trip in these cities was 200, 192 and 180 rubles, respectively.
The most expensive taxi rides (669 rubles on average), according to the study, were made in St. Petersburg.
In Moscow, the average check for one trip was 286 rubles.
The authors of the study explain the abnormally high performance of the Northern capital by high tourist activity and visits to out-of-town attractions, including Kronstadt, Gatchina and Peterhof.
Against the backdrop of rising prices for transportation, the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) became interested in the activities of taxi aggregators, writes Forbes. According to the publication, the agency sent a letter to four large taxi aggregators asking them to explain the increase in taxi prices in Moscow and Kazan, and also to explain why trips to the same distance can have different prices on different types of mobile devices.
Taxi aggregators interviewed do not disclose the average cost of a trip, citing a dynamic pricing system.
"The platform analyzes the balance of supply and demand in all parts of the city every second, and can apply incremental factors to the cost to attract more drivers to areas with increased demand,
— reported in the press service of Didi. “Once supply and demand are in equilibrium, which sometimes happens within minutes, the system stops applying the dynamic factor.”
Yandex.Go did not answer questions regarding the average ticket for a trip and the dynamics of its growth.
Nearly a quarter of the increase in travel costs does not cover the increased costs due to the rise in the price of gasoline, cars and spare parts, industry representatives complain.
“The commission of aggregators is quite high, it reaches 30% and has always been like that. But over the past two years, since the beginning of the pandemic, cars, spare parts, gasoline have risen in price, the cost of travel has increased,
Andrey Popkov, chairman of the coordinating council of the interregional trade union Taxi Driver, says. “Taxi prices went up, especially before the New Year, because there was a high demand, but at the moment they have gone down a bit.”
The rise in taxi prices has not compensated for the increased costs of carriers, and now there is a decrease in the number of taxi cars due to the unprofitability of this business, the industry representative emphasizes.
Taxi prices in 2021 increased due to increased demand for travel compared to the pandemic year of 2020, while there are fewer drivers on the line, Anton Maksimov, founder of the Taxi Ombudsman Telegram channel, notes.
“Drivers' incomes are falling due to low prices and rising costs, including for car maintenance, OSAGO and gasoline have grown in price.
Although the tariffs of aggregators have not changed for several years, says Maksimov. - At the same time, in Moscow, the vast majority of drivers work on rental cars. And if at the beginning of last year an economy class car could be taken for 1300 rubles. per day, but now - no less than 1700.
The rise in taxi prices is based on objective indicators, and transportation will inevitably rise in price if car prices continue to rise, says Petr Shkumatov, coordinator of the Blue Buckets movement.
“The depreciation of a car takes half of the prime cost of passenger taxi services. Another important factor is the price of fuel, which accounts for a quarter.
Cars have risen in price by 40%, gasoline - by 10%, - explains Shkumatov, - Well, the taxi driver should earn more, at least for the inflation rate. The indicator of 23% statistically fits into the general rise in the cost of means of production.”
If the rise in prices for cars continues, the prices for taxi services will inevitably go up, but this service still cannot lose its status as a public one, Shkumatov concludes.
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