There's a network effect component for shared/pooled rides.
Upstarts will lose a lot if they offer shared prices without matched riders.
Upstarts will lose a lot if they offer shared prices without matched riders.
We also have Express Pool where you get picked up / dropped off at some walkable distance from your actual origin/destination to make it even cheaper for the consumer and more efficient for drivers.
At one point Uber was even competing with the bus / streetcar with a special ride type where you would have to be picked up or dropped off at specific points along one street but they discontinued this.
I would definitely consider these sorts of shared rides as a moat.
Just looked at an Uber trip in Toronto, and the breakdown is:
Express Pool: $8.44
Pool: $11.25
UberX: $17.38