A standard rideshare from Metrotown to New Westminster costs about $19 at normal demand, with a likely range of $17 to $22. Count on 8 km and roughly a quarter of an hour in the car.
How the price adds up
Our figure comes from average rideshare rates, which are a $2.50 base fare, $1.15 per km, $0.35 per minute and a $2 booking fee. Eight kilometres adds $9.20 and fifteen minutes adds $5.25. The total before the booking fee is $16.95, and with the fee it is about $19.
Those are estimates, not Uber’s own prices. When you enter the trip in the Uber app you will see the real upfront price, and it may differ by a dollar or two from ours.
Demand changes the number quickly on a short ride. At 1.2 times normal the price is about $22. At 1.5 times it is around $27, and at 2 times it reaches about $36. Even the highest of those is still a modest amount in dollars, but it is nearly twice the usual fare for the same 15 minutes.
Comfort is about $23 and XL, which has up to 6 seats, is about $27. Premier comes to about $40. If four or five of you are travelling, XL at normal demand costs about $8 more than a standard car, which is usually less than splitting into two rides.
The regional minimum fare is $4.43, but at 8 km you are far above it, so the minimum does not apply here.
Taxi meter for Metrotown to New Westminster
Whalley Taxi and Royal City Taxi publish the same tariff, a $3.75 flag fee and $2.18 per km. Across the 8 km, the meter lands near $21. That excludes waiting time and any extras, so treat it as a base figure.
The taxi is a little more than the rideshare at normal demand, and it is cheaper once the app is in very busy or peak pricing.
Meeting the driver without delay
On a short shopping centre trip, most delays come from the meeting point. Check the pickup pin in the app, then walk to it before you book. Give the driver an exact address or entrance in the notes. Ask in advance if you have bags or a folded stroller that need boot space.
If you need an accessible vehicle, phone ahead and book it instead of waiting to see one in the app. Allow a few extra minutes during busy hours, because a trip of this length is easily thrown off by a slow start.