SynCab Taxi Launches Official Fleet Service with Custom Fare Options and Online Hailing in Hong Kong.

Transport Department issues first official Taxi Fleet Licence

The Transport Department (TD) announced today (July 14) that an official Taxi Fleet Licence has been issued to SynCab Taxi (mixed fleet), operated by SynCab Service Limited, in accordance with regulation 12E(1) of the Road Traffic (Public Service Vehicles) Regulations (Cap. 374D) for a period of five years. The fleet officially commenced services today.

The TD has approved the taxi livery design and markings of the fleet. For easy identification by passengers, all fleet taxis are required to display fleet taxi plates (see Annex) at the front and rear of the taxi bodies, and a fleet taxi certificate on the windscreens of the taxis.

All fleets provide online hailing services. Fleet taxis may customise fares for pre-arranged journeys, charging a booking fee on top of the metered fare or charging a lump sum fare before the journey starts. Both must be agreed with the hirer in advance. The fares of fleet taxis may vary for pre-arranged journeys depending on the circumstances at the time of booking and the types of taxis requested by the passenger. For example, higher fares may be charged during peak hours or when the passenger requests a premium taxi. For street-hailing trips, fleet taxis shall charge according to the same fare schedule as general taxis.

The TD has set up a taxi fleet thematic website. It will also introduce information of the taxi fleet service to the public and tourists through various online and offline channels, including the TD's HKeMobility mobile application, and the collaboration with the Hong Kong Tourism Board, the Airport Authority Hong Kong, the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal operator and Hong Kong Talent Engage.

In addition, the TD has set up about 80 designated fleet taxi stopping places across 13 locations, such as the airport, certain boundary control points, the Hong Kong West Kowloon Station of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link, some Airport Express stations, the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal and the Hong Kong Disneyland. Information plates will be installed at these locations. The TD will also put up signage and display panels at some of these locations, and display online hailing QR codes via leaflets and posters for the public and tourists to make their bookings.

The TD will monitor the fleet's operations and continue to actively promote the remaining fleets to commence operations as soon as possible.

Transport Department issues first official Taxi Fleet Licence Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Transport Department issues first official Taxi Fleet Licence Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

HKSAR Government responds to World Bank Group Business Ready 2025 Report

The World Bank Group published the second pilot Business Ready 2025 Report (Report) on December 29. The Report analyses the overall performance of economies under three pillars (Note 1) involving ten topics (Note 2) and assesses their business environment accordingly. The number of economies assessed is expanded from 50 economies last year to over 100 this year. According to the Report, among the three pillars, Hong Kong remains in the top 20 in "Operational Efficiency" and in the second quintile in "Regulatory Framework" and "Public Services".

"Some assessment results of the Report, such as those relating to 'International Trade', 'Financial Services', 'Dispute Resolution' etc., differ from the rankings and highly positive evaluations bestowed upon Hong Kong by many other international organisations. We note that the assessment methodology of the Report may result in an outdated and unfair comparison. Taking the pillar of 'Operational Efficiency' as an example, some of the data used to assess Hong Kong were collected shortly after the pandemic in 2023, while some of the data used for other economies' assessment were collected in 2024," a Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government spokesman said.

"This year's report is still under the pilot phase and may have room for improvement on the assessment methodology and data comparability. The HKSAR Government will maintain communication with the World Bank Group to fully explain Hong Kong's business environment and relevant policy measures. The HKSAR Government will also raise constructive feedback, striving to optimise the compilation of the Report," the spokesman said.

Note 1: The three pillars include "Regulatory Framework", "Public Services" and "Operational Efficiency"

Note 2: The ten topics are "Business Entry", "Business Location", "Utility Services", "Labor", "Financial Services", "International Trade", "Taxation", "Dispute Resolution", "Market Competition" and "Business Insolvency".

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