TAMPA, Fla — Now, you're not only paying more at the pump, but you'll also pay more to catch a ride. It's all to help drivers get by though.
Rideshare companies like Lyft and Uber are increasing prices to keep up with the record cost to fill up.
"At first, when I heard it, I was excited because it would help and it would nearly cover the price of gas for the night. What surprises me more is it took until now for them to actually decide to do something about it. It's been weeks of these gas prices," Kristen Finelli said.
Finelli is a Lyft driver in Tampa and relies on driving to have a steady income.
"I was considering stopping driving just because the amount of rides I was getting and the length of the trips and the amount I was getting for those trips was not enough to maintain a decent income," Finelli said.
Lyft is adding a 0.45 to 0.55 cents surcharge to try and keep drivers like her on the road. Uber is doing the same. Both rideshare services say the extra charge to the rider go straight to the driver to offset costs.
According to AAA, Florida's price for fuel rose a total of 0.90 cents per gallon throughout the past two weeks. The cost to fill an average 15-gallon tank of gas is about $65, which is $23 more than what drivers paid this time last year.
"I have complaints and I want to voice them, but at same time I'm doing what I gotta do to get bills paid. I'm doing what I gotta do to put food in my child's mouth and to try and pay rent and pay the bills" Finelli said.
While everyone feels the sting once their done filling up, drivers like Kristen that rely on driving for a living just try to get by and hope prices will go down quick.
"You just have to make that choice with the prices of things now in days whether to keep driving and spending money or cut your losses and make it by until things get better," Finelli said.
There is some good news, experts say there may soon be some relief at the pump. That's because the cost of oil is decreasing to less than $100.00 a barrel. A big drop from the hefty $130.00 record price tag set just last week.