Calcutta: The cap on surge fares might have been for the base categories of app cabs such as UberGo and Ola Micro, but even Uber Premier fares are quoting lower.

Uber Premier rates have been consistently lower than UberGo rates over the past few days. The company confirmed this, saying: "We are running promotionals on Uber Premier."

An UberGo fare estimate from Chandni Chowk to Ballygunge on a Tuesday evening was Rs 197.25. The same ride on Premier cost Rs 158, with a 25 per cent discount.

"It's a bonanza really. Why would anyone go on UberGo if Uber Premier rates are lower," wondered Ishita Sanyal, a regular app cab user.

The same distance on Ola Micro was estimated at Rs 179. While Ola Micro cars are typically Hyundai Eon, Datsun GO or Maruti Alto, all compact hatches, UberGo rides are on Maruti Swift, Dzire and Toyota Etios Liva.

"If UberGo vehicles are not available, the customer is upgraded to a Uber Premier vehicle at UberGo charges," a company spokesman said.

Uber Premier has a fleet of spacious sedans with drivers who have high ratings, according to the Uber blog.

Earlier this month, app-cab aggregators Uber and Ola had agreed to restrict their surge pricing formula to .45X of the base fare in the base categories.

Uber, which completed its one billionth ride in India on Tuesday, is piloting a "lite" version of its app and is also testing out providing the estimated time of travel to a destination.

Uber Lite is a simple version of the app that saves space, works on any network, and on any Android phone, including a feature phone, the spokesperson said.

Uber Lite is less than 5MB to download with a 300-millisecond response time and the booking process is fast even when connectivity is slow, according to the company's blog.

"Uber Lite keeps the core functionality of our rider app, and has many of its existing features like in-app support and the ability to share your trip with friends and family. But with a reimagined interface, it was designed to make booking rides easier and quicker in spotty connectivity and slower than average internet speeds, on basic Android phones, and for people with limited data plans," says the blog.

The city has witnessed the launch of another app cab called ZustGo, which is promising surge-free rides. However, cabs on this app are at times hard to come by.

On a Tuesday evening, no cabs were available in its Regular and Royal categories from Chandni Chowk. On a Monday morning, no Regular cab was available.

An email to the company, which launched its service in the city on July 26, has so far elicited no response.

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