A Melbourne cab operator has been “caught by surprise” by a massive surge in demand.

13cabs chief operating officer Stuart Overell says demand has “skyrocketed” since December, with the number of bookings coming through the system roughly doubling.

“It’s actually caught us by surprise!,” he told Neil Mitchell.

3AW Mornings compared Uber and 13cabs pricing for a trip from the CBD to the airport this morning. 13cabs offered a fixed price of $64, while Uber’s price was a whopping $95.

Mr Overell said the 13cabs fixed price guarantee has “really resonated” with Melburnians as rideshare operators hike surge pricing.

He says the industry is better as a result of rideshare companies.

“The good news story out of rideshare for the industry is we’ve all had to lift our game and be smarter, invest in more technology,” he said.

Press PLAY below to hear more about the trend