Bolt Kenya has announced it is revising fare prices in Kenya with the reason given being the increased cost of fuel in the country. This comes after Uber announced it will be increasing its prices, following a planned switch off by Taxi drivers in the country.
Bolt says their revision of prices has resulted in an increment in the ‘Per KM’ charges. The company previously charged KES 25 per kilometre on Bolt Lite. This is going up to KES 26.90 per kilometre in Nairobi.
All ride categories will be updated with an average increase of KES 2 for each KM completed on-trip. And these changes cut across all the cities where Bolt currently operates. Different cities and towns where Bolt operates will get different increments in line with the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) guidelines on fuel prices in different parts of the country.
The Base category will now attract an addition of KES 2.10 per kilometre in Nairobi and KES 1.70 per kilometre in Mombasa, while riders in the economy (Lite) category will now pay an additional KES 1.50 per kilometre in Nakuru and Kisumu towns.
Tuk Tuk and Boda boda services in Mombasa, will each attract an increment of KES 0.60 per kilometre.
Boda boda services in other towns will attract price increment as follows; Nairobi KES 0.80 per kilometre, Nakuru KES 0.70 per kilometre and KES 0.60 per kilometre in both Kisumu and Eldoret.
“Bolt is a responsible brand that is always trying to do what is best for both drivers and passengers. We acknowledge the huge financial burden on the customers and drivers with respect to the increased fuel prices in the country. We also remain cognizant that we form part of an ecosystem where every part is as important as the other. Our pricing has always been informed by market forces and driver earnings. We trust that our evaluation on fluctuating fuel costs and the action to mitigate the impact, will stabilize the growth and sustainability of driver earnings and cost of doing business,” said Micah Kenneth, Regional Manager, Bolt East Africa.
“We constantly do our reviews to ensure that we continue to provide best earnings for drivers and still remain the most preferred platform by customers. We believe that this small increase will still make it possible for riders to access affordable transport whilst providing better earnings for drivers,” added Micah.
