He says there are no alternatives, but I can think of one -- buffering the price themselves, by charging slightly more during the off-peak demand periods to be able to pay more during the peak. While this probably can't be as economically efficient as dynamic pricing in the short run, in the long run, it could be better for their branding. Unavailable cars is bad for brand perception for the individual users who experience it, but surge pricing has damaged their brand for people who haven't even installed the Uber app yet.