Legislative Council member Lam Sze-Sik has proposed a debate in the Legislative Council on the legalization of ride-hailing services in Macau, offering a glimmer of hope to deeply frustrated residents and tourists.
Unlike the rest of China and most of Asia, ride-hailing platforms such as Uber, Didi or Grab are illegal in Macau, forcing people to rely on the city’s The number of taxis is pitifully small This results in long taxi waiting times.
According to Carrie Lam, as of March 31, there were 1,501 taxis in Macau, serving a population of nearly 700,000, with an average of one taxi for every 463 people. During major holidays, more than 100,000 tourists flock to Macau every day, putting even greater pressure on taxis.
I am Tell TDM Macau sees ‘increasing’ demand for ride-hailing services as tourism recovers after pandemic
[See more: Macao can forget about being an international destination until it fixes its taxi problem]
“For years, I have received a lot of complaints from the public about Macau’s taxi services and as a solution, we can consider online ride-hailing platforms,” he told the radio station. He said services such as Uber, Didi or Grab were “very effective”.
The councillor added that existing online booking services and the number of taxis available to local taxi companies were “not sufficient to meet local demand”.
Hundreds of taxi licences are also set to expire, and although the government has approved 500 new taxi licences, they can only be used in next year The government also acknowledged Maybe it’s not enough To meet the needs.
Uber announced its exit from Macau in 2016 after spending millions of patacas in a costly regulatory battle to continue operating in the city.
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