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Ride-hailing users to pay more as Ruto orders minimum Uber, Bolt fares
Uber and Bolt taxi drivers to charge more.
Users of ride-hailing taxis are set to pay more after President William Ruto directed the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) to implement minimum fare regulations targeting Uber, Bolt and other digital taxi platforms.
The order followed high-level consultations between the President and transport industry stakeholders at State House, Mombasa, amid mounting pressure from matatu operators, digital taxi drivers and logistics players over escalating operating costs.
The intervention immediately places Uber, Bolt and other ride-hailing platforms at the centre of a broader State-led effort to cushion transport operators from the ongoing global fuel price shock.
“The Ministry of Transport, through the NTSA, will engage transport network companies and drivers operating under the digital taxi platforms with a view to immediately implement regulations on a minimum taxi fare and resolving the long-running disputes affecting the ride-hailing sector,” said Dr Ruto.
The directive came against the backdrop of intensifying anger among transport operators over rising fuel prices linked to the ongoing Middle East conflict and its impact on global oil markets.
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The presidential intervention also comes barely months after the Transport ministry disclosed plans to roll out a national taxi pricing framework targeting both conventional taxis and digital ride-hailing operators.
The proposal sought to establish minimum viable fares after government reviews of various parameters such as driver operating costs, insurance expenses, maintenance charges, fuel costs and commission structures charged by transport network companies.
Officials have increasingly argued that unchecked fare competition has triggered aggressive price undercutting, weakening driver earnings and destabilising the economics of Kenya’s rapidly expanding ride-hailing transport ecosystem.
Drivers have also, in recent weeks, intensified pressure on regulators, warning of strikes and demanding urgent intervention over shrinking earnings caused by rising operating expenses and aggressive fare competition.
Some ride-hailing driver unions have proposed fare increases of up to 16 percent, including higher minimum charges depending on engine capacity, travel distance and operating conditions.
They have, additionally, demanded stricter enforcement of commission caps after longstanding disputes over the percentage deductions charged by transport network companies from completed trips.
Kenya’s ride-hailing market has expanded rapidly over the past decade, supported by smartphone penetration, cheaper internet connectivity and growing demand for app-based urban transport services.
Government data shows approximately 35,000 drivers are currently enrolled on ride-hailing applications nationally, collectively completing nearly 175,000 trips daily across competing transport platforms.
The sector is dominated by multinational technology companies including Uber and Bolt alongside regional and local operators aggressively competing through discounts and dynamic pricing model.
The industry has historically experienced repeated regulatory clashes involving drivers, passengers, digital platforms and government agencies over pricing, commissions, safety standards and operational requirements.
Conventional taxi operators have previously accused ride-hailing firms of disrupting established transport businesses through aggressive discounting and technology-driven operational advantages unavailable to traditional operators.
The ride-hailing sector supports thousands of drivers operating through asset-financing arrangements that have become increasingly vulnerable to shrinking earnings and volatile operating costs.
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