HK to see 1000 fleet taxis officially operate by end of July

Hong Kong’s Transport Department chief said on Friday that the city’s five taxi fleets have been put into trial operation and licenses will be officially issued next month, with up to 1,000 taxis providing services by the end of the month.

Angela Lee Chung-yan, Commissioner for Transport, said the taxi fleet operators have worked hard to prepare and have done a lot of work since receiving conditional grants for the Taxi Fleet Licence.

Lee noted that most fleets have already reached 60 percent of the relevant fleet size in terms of vehicles, having also installed necessary onboard equipment.

After considering various factors, the government plans to issue official Taxi Fleet Licenses in July to the fleets currently in the trial phase. It is estimated that around 1,000 fleet taxis will be operational by the end of the month, said Lee.

Once officially licensed, operators will be able to use dedicated taxi stands at 13 locations, including the airport, certain cross-border checkpoints, and popular tourist spots, totaling about 80 reserved parking spaces for pre-booked passengers.

Regarding ride-hailing methods, Lee mentioned that a local e-payment service provider has developed a platform for the five fleets to facilitate public bookings, and the fleets are actively integrating into the system.

Lee said the Transport Department will maintain close communication with fleet operators to streamline vehicle inspection procedures while ensuring safety. Batch applications and inspections will also introduced to help operators acquire new vehicles more efficiently.