Premium

Rs 118 for 100 feet?: Man’s accidental Uber booking at a metro station sparks debate over cab pricing algorithms

The rider booked an Uber cab after stepping out of a metro station, and once inside the cab, he realised that he had mistakenly selected the same metro station as his drop-off point instead of his home.

2 min readNew DelhiJan 8, 2026 09:55 AM IST

The Uber driver quickly noticed the error and cancelled the ride, saving the passenger from wasting his time (Photo: Freepik)

An X user, who goes by the name The Kaipullai, sparked a conversation around how cab service platforms calculate fares with ultra-short Uber rides.

The user shared that he booked an Uber ride after stepping out of a metro station, and once inside the cab, he realised that he had mistakenly selected the same metro station as his drop-off point instead of his home. The distance between the pickup and the destination was barely 100 feet.

According to the user, the driver quickly noticed the error and cancelled the ride, saving the passenger from wasting his time. However, it was the fare displayed on the app that truly amused users on social media.

“The funny part is Uber actually showed me a fare. Initially, it showed Rs 160. Then it graciously revised it down to Rs 118. For travelling about 100 ft,” the user shared in the post.

See the viral post here:

So I came out of the Metro Station today and booked an Uber

I accidentally selected the same metro station as my destination instead of my home

One rider accepted the ride

I only realized it after getting into the cab when he corrected me.

He was gracious enough to cancel…

— The Kaipullai (@thekaipullai) January 6, 2026

Also Read | Bengaluru vendor works two shifts daily to educate daughter, earns praise as ‘quiet legend’

“One rider accepted the ride. I only realized it after getting into the cab when he corrected me. He was gracious enough to cancel the ride,” the user wrote.

The post quickly went viral, sparking a larger conversation on cab fares in India. “The driver tricked you. He knows he’ll get paid. He should have told you to amend your destination,” a user wrote. “You can change the destination. Selected a similar sounding destination, the driver told me to change the destination, and it worked,” another user commented.

“Didn’t attempt to update the destination, I’m not from the Uber team, but I doubt they could handle doing better for this, eventually they have to penalize someone for cancellation and feed some to the driver,” a third user reacted.