Ride-hailing | Uber: If the vehicle license quota is only 15k, service supply will be greatly reduced

Ride-hailing platform Uber spokesperson stated that, as the government releases policy discussion documents regarding regulation of ride-hailing vehicles, the company is deeply concerned about the mainstream public opinion on the current social stance regarding license quotas for ride-hailing vehicles. If the quota is set between 10k and 15k, it will be difficult to meet the current demand of Hong Kong residents and travelers, and may significantly impact the experience of local residents and tourists using ride-hailing services.

The spokesperson pointed out that over the past year, more than 30k drivers rely on ride-hailing platforms to earn flexible income to make a living. This would mean that over 15k drivers could lose their income sources overnight, and the overall supply of ride-hailing services would also decrease substantially, severely affecting passengers’ travel experience.

Uber welcomes the government’s statement that it will dynamically review the quota, but the review mechanism must be data-driven to provide clear guidance and be regularly reviewed to ensure it can appropriately respond to passenger needs; however, the review mechanism cannot compensate for the impact on passengers and drivers caused by an initially set low quota. It urges the government to carefully assess current and future market demand before drafting related legislation and finalizing the initial quota, to avoid the implementation leading to thousands of drivers losing their jobs, and to ensure that passengers’ current reliable travel experience is not affected.