First batch of cab licences to be issued since 1988
Finding a taxi in Macau is becoming as difficult as hitting the jackpot at a casino. But after years of stalling, the Macau government has finally decided to auction off 30 new taxi licences next month, the first new batch in 17 years.
Macau's Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau will auction off the 10-year taxi licences, starting at 200,000 patacas. The government last issued new taxi licences in 1988.
All existing 753 taxi licences in Macau are permanent, and it is the first time the Macau government has issued cab licences with time restrictions.
To avoid someone monopolising the auction, each person or company will only be able to bid for one licence, which is also a first.
But some taxi drivers argue there are enough cabs on the road, and the real problem with trying to grab a cab is the traffic infrastructure.