[Related to the Chapter Opener on page 108] Uber is an
app people use to arrange transportation with drivers who
use their own cars for this purpose. Customers pay for
their rides with the Uber smartphone app. Uber’s prices
fluctuate with the demand for the service. This “surge pricing” can result in different prices for the same distance
traveled at different times of day or days of the week. Annie
Lowrey, a writer for the New York Times, explained that she
paid $13 for a 10 p.m. 2-mile trip in downtown Washington, DC, on New Year’s Eve. Three hours later she paid $47
for the return trip to her home. Did she receive negative
consumer surplus on her return trip? Briefly explain.
Source: Annie Lowrey, “Is Uber’s Surge-Pricing an Example of High
Tech Gouging?” New York Times, January 10, 2014.