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The government will actively explore flexible methods to calculate minimum trip requirements for ride-hailing vehicles, Secretary for Transport and Logistics Mabel Chan said on Thursday.
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Her remarks were made today in response to concerns raised by lawmakers regarding a proposed mandate. Under the draft policy, ride-hailing vehicles must complete a specified number of monthly trips to qualify for license renewal.
The lawmakers questioned whether special arrangements would be granted if a driver fails to meet the quota due to traffic accidents, vehicle maintenance, or injuries.
Chan noted that the trips could be calculated on a daily basis, while drivers could be allowed to average out their trips over the license's validity period to make up for any shortfalls, instead of facing a strict monthly quota.
The government will study flexible approaches to help vehicle owners meet the standards according to their individual circumstances, Chan said, adding that the finalized trip requirements will be published in a future notice.
Meanwhile, lawmakers questioned whether the new application process for electronic ride-hailing permits, which is mandated under the new provisions, would be integrated with the current "e-Licensing" platform.
Commissioner for Transport Winnie Tse Wing-yee responded that the department is currently building a new backend system and will launch a dedicated website specifically for ride-hailing applications.
The new electronic permits will be incorporated into this system, she added.
