Hopefully, taxi showdown leads down the road to better services

If AutoNavi Taxi has stunned Hong Kong Tele-call Taxi Association chairman Wong Yu-ting because the mainland-based ride-hailing operator has allegedly broken its promise and expanded its pool of vehicles to private cars, the incident may be viewed as additional proof that individualized transportation in Hong Kong is in dire need of a major transformation to meet today's needs.

AutoNavi Taxi - better known in the mainland as Gaode Taxi or Gaode Ride-Hailing - has been collaborating with the taxi community here to offer app-based taxi booking services for a year.

The partnership between the firm and the taxi industry was forged when Hong Kong's taxi operators faced increased competition from Uber, which was accused of offering ride-hailing services in the gray area.

Only those holding a taxi licence may own and operate taxis in Hong Kong - private cars without a business licence are not supposed to carry passengers for a fee.

Nonetheless, the growing popularity of Uber and other ride-hailing services involving private cars has become an issue that is not unique to Hong Kong.

It is a hot potato that Transport Secretary Mable Chan inherited from her predecessor Lam Sai-hung - a thorny issue that Lam had not resolved before he was forced to step down early.

The recent development between AutoNavi and the taxi trade is interesting.

Backed by mainland tech giant Alibaba, AutoNavi entered the Hong Kong market rather late, during the Spring Festival in 2024.

Since teaming up with taxi operators, it has offered passengers two options: chartered and metered taxi services.

Obviously, neither of these taxi options falls in the gray area.

In contrast, Uber - which started by exploring the gray potential - is extending its platform to taxis as more drivers sign up to various ride-hailing platforms to improve their business.

If visitors from the mainland are accustomed to using AutoNavi - or Gaode, as it is known to them - travelers from other countries are familiar with the Uber app.

Wong should be forgiven for feeling betrayed as AutoNavi moves on to offer ride-hailing services beyond those of taxis. He and other taxi owners genuinely believed that their business partnership with AutoNavi would help them survive the market war. They should also be forgiven for airing their discontent to Chan as they met her yesterday to celebrate the Spring Festival.

Chan's remarks afterwards contained some new information, but it has taken the authority far too long to review the situation.

I was so glad to hear her saying it was urgent for the situation be regulated.

According to the minister, ride-hailing platform operators will be asked to monitor drivers' performance and must be registered and licensed in Hong Kong.

More importantly, the government plans to put forward a legislative proposal within the year.

Is this the first time a high-ranking official has committed to a timetable in respect of regulating ride-hailing services?

It is hoped that the proposal will pave the way to transform individualized transportation in the city in a way that truly meets the genuine needs of the digital age.