Bolt Rebrands ‘Economy’ Ride Category to ‘Basic’ in Port Harcourt, Causes Confusion

There is confusion among e-hailing drivers in Port Harcourt, the Rivers state capital, after the popular ride-hailing company Bolt rebranded its ‘Economy’ ride category to ‘Basic’ in Port Harcourt. This change has surprised many drivers and riders who use the Bolt platform regularly.

According to driver dashboards seen by reporters, the usual ‘Economy’ category has been replaced by the ‘Basic’ category. Instead of the familiar options of Bolt, Economy, and Comfort, the app now shows Bolt, Basic, and Comfort. This change is also visible on the riders’ app, where the Economy category has been replaced with Basic.

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The rebranding from Economy to Basic in Port Harcourt has caused confusion because many drivers believe the Regular category is the basic or simplest option. Before, the Economy category was understood as the cheaper, lower-class ride, while Comfort was the more expensive, higher-class option. Changing Economy to Basic has made it unclear which category is which.

Drivers say the change was made without any prior notice from Bolt, which added to their frustration. One driver said, “They have changed the name from ‘Economy’ to ‘Basic’ so that it would look like the regular Bolt option for drivers, not knowing what they are doing is still an economy ride.” Another driver commented, “They should change the name to anything they like. If they like, let them change the name to Basic, whatever they change it to, we, the drivers, still know which ride is economy and which one is Bolt. What is the meaning of Basic? They don’t want to call it Economy anymore and they have given it a fine name so that people will not understand.” Some drivers even compared the change to the Nigerian government’s controversial renaming of SARS to SWAT, showing how unhappy they are with the decision.

Bolt’s Economy ride category has been very popular in Rivers state, especially because of Nigeria’s tough economic conditions. Many riders prefer the Economy option because it is cheaper, and drivers find it productive despite the low fares. In fact, Bolt has a large share of the ride-hailing market in Port Harcourt, and the Economy ride is the most in-demand category there.

A Bolt spokesperson told Technext that the Economy ride option is not being removed. “No, we are not doing away with the economy ride option at all. The Economy category remains active and is, in fact, the most in-demand ride option in Port Harcourt,” the spokesperson said.

However, some drivers feel the Economy category is unfair because of its low prices, which make it hard for them to earn enough money. There were even reports that some drivers paid money to have the Economy option restored after it was taken away from them for breaking rules, like going offline during trips.

In the past, many drivers were happy when they heard that Bolt might remove the Economy category because they believed it exploited them with very low fares. The Rivers State Chairman of the AUATON, Comrade Omoruyi Amos, said that the Economy class forced drivers to work at a loss and hurt their dignity. He welcomed the news of its removal but remained cautious.

Later, Bolt clarified that the Economy ride was not removed but only disabled for drivers who broke the rules. This explanation did not satisfy the drivers, who continued to call for the category’s total removal.

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The recent rebranding from Economy to Basic in Port Harcourt may be Bolt’s response to the drivers’ complaints. But some drivers are already planning to protest the new Basic category with a campaign called “Operation off your Basic.” One driver said, “Be it Basic or Economy, any name they change it to, we are going to still shut it down.”

Bolt rebrands ‘Economy’ ride to ‘Basic’ in Port Harcourt, causing confusion among drivers and riders. While Bolt says the Economy ride remains the most popular, many drivers feel the change is unclear and unfair. The debate over this ride category continues as drivers push for better conditions.

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