Police figures reveal a sharp rise in the number of taxi drivers prosecuted for refusing fares and over-charging
A police operation including undercover officers posing as drunk passengers has lead to a tripling in drivers being charged for ripping off passengers
Disgruntled taxi travellers have been handed another stick to beat the much maligned Hong Kong cabbie in the shape of new figures which reveal a sharp rise in the number of drivers being prosecuted for refusing fares and over-charging.
Police data obtained by the Sunday Morning Post shows that in Central district of Hong Kong Island alone, the number of taxi drivers hit with a summons for refusing a hire almost tripled – from 49 to 125 – year-on-year between 2014 and 2015. Over the same period, the number of cabbies arrested for overcharging jumped from 13 to 39.
It has reached the stage where a significant number of taxi drivers seem to think that anything goes. It’s getting silly and the time has come to bring them into line
The latest official figures come almost a year after the government’s Transport Complaints Unit reported a massive rise in the number of complaints against cabbies from members of the public.
They also come as the red, green and blue stranglehold on Hong Kong’s taxi trade is being threatened by cab-hailing app newcomers, Uber, who aim to lure disgruntled cab users away from the city’s 18,000 traditional taxis.
Beefed up enforcement by police – including the use of undercover officers posing as inebriated passengers – has played a significant part in the rise but police say the level of arrests and summonses suggests the number of drivers plying their trade intent on ripping off passengers is growing.
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In an operation Friday night, a 49-year-old taxi driver was arrested for charging a fare of HK$100 for a trip from the junction of D’Aguilar Street and Queen’s Road Central to 33 Conduit Road. The normal fare would be between HK$30-HK$40. The driver is also accused of not displaying his driver identity plate.