They’re calling the new fee “temporary fuel assistance for drivers,” but whatever the name, starting Wednesday you will be paying anywhere between 35 and 55 cents extra for any Uber ride or Uber Eats order.

Update: Shortly after Uber's announcement, Lyft announced a similar surcharge. Though CNBC reports "The company did not provide further details on how much more riders can expect to pay."

The current historic spike in gas prices is, not surprisingly, cutting into gig workers’ wages so much that the Guardian reports they are not even making minimum wage, or more accurately, even less of less than minimum wage than they were making before. Those high prices are in turn creating other high prices, for people who use Uber and Uber Eats, at least, as KGO reports that Uber will add a fuel fee to all rides and orders starting Wednesday, a fee that could be as high as 55 cents per ride.      

Uber describes the new fee on their blog as a “temporary fuel assistance for drivers and couriers,” it will vary by city and trip distance, and it is supposedly only temporary. “Rides customers will pay a surcharge of either $0.45 or $0.55 on each Uber trip, and Eats customers will pay either $0.35 or $0.45 on each Uber Eats order, depending on their location,” according to the official Uber announcement. “The surcharge is temporary for the next 60 days, but we will continue to monitor gas prices and may make additional changes.”

The company does say that “100% of this new surcharge will go directly to [the driver],” so we would hope that’s true. Given the California gas price situation, you should expect the full 55-cent surcharge in the Bay Area on all Uber rides, and the full 45-cent surcharge on all Uber Eats orders.

According to KGO, the new fee “will take effect on Wednesday,” March 16.  

This current gas price spike comes at a moment when the traditionally very unprofitable Uber has actually squeezed out two consecutive marginally profitable quarters. Obviously Uber does not pay a thing for gas, that’s a driver cost. But gas prices may make drivers shy away from driving, or turn down more fares, and Uber's current profitability is small enough that it could be disrupted by driver drop-off. This may be the right move for them, though the odds of gas prices falling 60 days from now in mid-May  — with Memorial Day and the summer right around the corner  — are between zero and you-must-be-fucking-kidding-me.

In other words, the extra gas fee will probably be around for a while. And don’t be surprised if other gig-economy companies add similar surcharges as well. Still, we would question whether gas really does cost more to deliver and supply, when these price increases just happen to coincide with oil and gas companies posting their largest profits in years.

Related: Where's the Cheapest Gas In the Bay Area Right Now? Pleasanton, and Kenwood [SFist]

Image: Viktor Bystrov via Unsplash

Residents of Vallejo were ordered to shelter in place overnight Tuesday as a mysterious odor sickened and hospitalized an unknown number of people. This was shortly before a "sheen" was spotted on the San Pablo Bay that led to a disruption in ferry service Wednesday morning. KRON 4 reports that the roughly 40-yard-wide patch on the water was first seen early this morning, and it led to an investigation to determine if the odor and the sheen were related.

The shelter in place was lifted this morning, and the Vallejo Fire Department managed to determine that the source of the odor was not Vallejo itself. However, no one has yet to figure out what caused the smell — which Bay City News reports was similar to that of natural gas.

According to NBC Bay Area, a majority of phone calls from concerned residents — over 500 — emanated from the Glen Cove and Beverly Hills Park neighborhoods. Patients at local hospitals reported burning in throats and noses.

Meanwhile, the Coast Guard has yet to figure out if the odor is caused by the sheen, or even what the sheen exactly is.

But ABC 7's Laura Anthony posted video to Twitter showing a ship believed to be the source of the slick, whatever it may be, near the Rodeo Phillips refinery.

Ferry service has been restored, but the sheen and the smell persist. However, Bay City News notes that one thing has been confirmed: The odor is neither natural gas nor refinery burn-off. As a general rule, the Vallejo Fire Department yesterday reminded residents that "If you smell gas outside shelter in your home, close windows, turn off air units."

Related: Vallejo Is Whack: Four Women Allegedly 'Terrorize' Jack In The Box Over Cold Food

The idea of never having to go to the gas station again is an appealing one — think electric, exhaust-free cars whisking you around a city that is suddenly just a bit less smoggy. But the latest attempt to disrupt how we fuel our rides is not the battery packs of Tesla, or even the self-driving cars of Lyft, rather it is a spate of new companies that promise to drive the gasoline to you. Startups with names like WeFuel, Booster Fuels, Filld, and Yoshi have begun popping up in the last year, and, according to The Guardian, it's a development that not only has at least one state official worried about potential safety risks, but has the SFFD asking vigilant citizens to report the fuel-delivery services to authorities.

The companies all work on a variation of the same theme: Via app, or a meter attached to your car, you either signal when you want a refill or your car does it automatically when the tank gets low. The company then sends a truck your way, and an attendant fuels your car while you're at work, the gym, or wherever. The "wherever" bit is apparently part of the problem.

“Some of the [companies] are using 1,000-gallon tanks,” Greg Andersen, division chief of the California office of the state fire marshal, explained to the paper. “If they’re going into the basement parking lot of a high rise, that actually is a large concern.”

SFFD Lieutenant Jonathan Baxter also expressed some concerns about the mobile mini-tankers, noting that there are currently no official safety regulations in place. One day there might be, but at present they don't exist. “We are not saying that we are not ever going to permit this,” he explained. “We are saying that we are working with other state agencies to figure out what is going to be best.”

Until that happens, however, The Guardian reports that "Baxter is asking members of the public to report any fuel delivery trucks they observe to the department for inspection, corrective measures and possible violations."

The companies are obviously sensitive to this critique, with Filld CEO Chris Aubuchon telling the paper that his trucks have two fire extinguishers, and that “We have carefully studied the legal requirements, operate within them, and serve our customers in full compliance with all applicable laws and regulations.”

And as is the norm with many companies trying to disrupt some established market, the startups hoping to deliver you gas may be a bit disdainful of existing market regulations. However, unlike laundry startups or food delivery startups, these newest players in the game are lugging around tankers full of combustible material. Maybe those regulations are there for a reason, and disrupting them might not be the best idea after all.

Related: App Promises To Drive A Fuel Truck To Your Car And Fill It Up So You Don't Have To

According to CBS 5, construction crews have accidentally ruptured a gas line at Mission and Beale streets in downtown San Francisco. Gas is "spewing everywhere." Please stay out of the area until further notice. PG&E and the fire department are on the scene.

We'll update as soon as we know more.

Update: Shelter in place ordered for all people in the area.

Update II:: ABC 7 reports: "Howard Street between Beale and 1st Street is closed." Workers still trying to repair leak. Shelter-in-place warning still in effect.

Update III: SFGate says that "Main Street to Howard Street, Howard to Fremont Street, and Howard to Market Street" all closed for repairs.

Update VI: Muni rerouting several inbound and outbound bus lines near Mission and Main Streets. "The 14, 5, 21, 31, and 71 lines are being rerouted until further notice," reports Muni Alerts.

Update V: GAS LEAK CAPPED. Residents may return home around 10 p.m.

A little after 11 p.m. last night, a gas leak was reported in the Sunset, resulting in the evacuation of four homes. The gas, it seems, emitted from a house at 1831 33rd Ave. Arriving firefighters were unable to shut off the gas "because a valve was rusted shut," but PG&E crews were later able to halt the gas at around 1 a.m. Residents have since returned to their homes. No injuries were reported. [SF Appeal]

Dear SF Cabs:

We hate you. But, like, we hate-hate you. We hate you to death. For reals. Why? Because in addition to never having change for a $20, charging too much for a ride from Van Ness and Market to Third and Market, childishly going on strike whenever the city dares to bring in more, much-needed cabs, and for this, you now want to "charge a $1 per passenger fee to offset rising fuel costs." We already have the nation's "second-highest 'flag drop' rate" ($3.10) as it is. So, why would you do this to us, you greedy, selfish, impromptu sociopolitical conversing, chatty bastards?

And, like, do you even want to be in this relationship?

Please drop dead.

Love,
the San Francisco Bay Area

We snapped the above photo at everyone's favorite traffic mess - the Arco station on Fell and Divisadero. The sign on the fence reminded me of photos we'd seen of gas shortages back before we were sentient, but happily for drivers, this isn't the harbinger of shortages or rationing. The station will soon finish with their repair work, and people will once again be able to fill their H2s for $.02/gallon less than at the station across the street! Sadly, that means the traffic mess will return - today was the first time in a very long time that we'd gone up the Fell Street bike lane without having to dodge out into traffic to avoid a car blocking the lane or the sidewalk.

Kind of makes you wonder what would happen if the SFPD stationed an officer at that driveway when the stations reopen? They might make enough in tickets to get rid of San Francisco's perennial budget deficit.