New regulations driving drivers away

AN INCREASING NUMBER OF CAR-HAILING DRIVERS in Guangzhou, South China's Guangdong province, are quitting their job following the full implementation of regulations for ride-sharing services, according to reports. China Youth Daily commented on Thursday:

The car-hailing regulations in most cities, which require drivers to have local household registrations and their vehicles to meet certain standards, have screened out many who used to work full time in the business.

The decline in the number of qualified drivers, unsurprisingly, has added to the travel woes of commuters with many of them paying more and waiting longer to get a ride-sharing car. Some people who were using car-share services have even gone back to using public transport, which, in most of the big cities struggles to meet the demand.

Car-hailing services are supposed to supplement public transport and alleviate traffic congestion. That drivers have to go to great lengths to stay in the business is not good news.

As of May 4, just 1,504 out of nearly 7,000 candidates passed the examination for car-hailing service in Guangzhou, a pass rate of around 21.5 percent. The pass rate in Shenzhen was only 10 percent.

The waning subsidies offered to drivers have also dissuaded some qualified drivers from staying in the business.

However, the biggest problem is the much higher threshold for drivers when it comes to vehicle standards and examinations.

That public transport is beginning to feel the pain after the exodus of car-hailing drivers points to the fact that the dividends of the digital economy can diminish if rigid transport management stands in the way. There is much room for improvement with regard to how to deal with emerging commuting options. And as an integral part of the sharing economy, ride-sharing services should be placed under flexible management.