Hong Kong taxi drivers threaten to blockade airport over luxury cab plan
Drastic action considered after drivers and supporters hold protest at government headquarters
The taxi trade has warned of drastic action to oppose plans to introduce premium cabs to the citythrough franchises, as transport minister Professor Anthony Cheung Bing-leung sticks to his guns over the trial scheme despite a protest by cabbies at government headquarters yesterday.
Ng Kwan-sing, spokesman for a group opposed to the government move, said taxi drivers could not rule out the possibility of further action such as blocking Hong Kong International Airport.
The warning came as about 100 taxis besieged government headquarters on Tim Mei Avenue and Lung Wui Road yesterday morning with protesters pouring buckets of cold water on two premium taxis in an emotional show of anger over plans to introduce 600 such vehicles shared among three franchises.
“We feel abandoned,” Ng said, adding that the exclusion of cabbies from the scheme would threaten their livelihoods. “We should be given a chance to participate in the new scheme first.”
He accused the government of failing to consult the taxi industry before it proposed the premium scheme.
“It’s very unfair for the tens of thousands of taxi drivers. Does it mean current cabbies are inferior? Are we not qualified to provide premium services?”
Are we not qualified to provide premium services?
Speaking at a Legislative Council transport panel meeting yesterday, some lawmakers including the Liberal Party’s Frankie Yick Chi-ming, who represents the transport sector, and radical Albert Chan Wai-yip, called on Cheung to rethink or simply scrap the plan, saying the government should focus on improving service quality in the existing sector.
Wu Chi-wai of the Democratic Party said: “The public expect good services not only from those 600 premium taxis, but also from the 18,000 ordinary taxis. Why are you creating a monopoly with only three franchises?”
Cheung, however, insisted the trial scheme, which will last four to six years, was not intended to compete with existing taxis as the premium cars would cater to a different market. He ruled out including existing taxis in the new scheme, saying it would be a complicated issue as ordinary taxis were operated under licences free from any regulations, whereas special terms could be imposed on the new franchises to ensure service quality.
“Our aim is just to provide an alternative to the existing service offered by ordinary taxis for those who ask for services of higher quality and are willing to pay higher fares. Their targeted customers are entirely different from those who take ordinary taxis,” Cheung said.
“This is only a preliminary idea, not a final proposal…We understand that some taxi operators are worried about the impact on the taxi trade. We will communicate with them and clarify any misunderstandings.”
Cheung said the government would finalise the scheme’s framework and details by the end of the year and report to the panel again.
