Photo by Mike

Photo by Mike

A number of local transit services offered deals to ease the tension created by Metro’s closure today. With the morning rush hour behind them, many of them have taken stock of how they fared.

Presumably expecting a big pay day, Uber drivers came out in droves, according to the company’s data. Uber saw a 50 percent increase in drivers on the road compared to last Wednesday’s rush.

One of the company’s big “deals” was capping surge pricing at 3.9x. This morning, the average surge price stayed below 1.7x, Uber reports. And as an option to prevent being overcharged, many riders took advantage of UberPOOL, which promises to cut costs in half. According to the company’s data, 1 in 4 riders paired up with a stranger.

The company also offered $25 off to virgin riders. Compared to the same 24-hour span last week, the number of people who signed up increased by nearly 70 percent, and 3 times as many people took their first trip during the morning rush, Uber reported.

Capitol Bikeshare’s incentive gave free 24-hour membership to new users. The company reports 1,014 walk-ups this morning, affording it a 106 percent increase in the number of non-members who hopped on compared to the same time last Wednesday.

And for folks who decided to drive this morning, Parking Panda encouraged them to reserve parking spaces early using their app. Between the time Metro announced the shutdown yesterday and noon today, more than 1,000 people booked a parking spot at one of the company’s participating garages and lots.

Parking Panda’s reservation numbers for the District today are 250 percent more than on normal weekday, says company spokesperson Jordan Weitzman. “And that percentage is rapidly increasing by the minute.”

As for Metrorail, inspectors completed half of their mission around noon. And as far as we know, the system will re-open tomorrow at 5 a.m., although some remain skeptic.

Filed Under: bikeshare, metro, parking, uber,