New taxi regulation gathers suggestions

New taxi regulation gathers suggestions

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 Tuesday, May 31, 2016 – 4 hours ago

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Another of the topics addressed at the plenary session yesterday was the proposed taxi regulation. The topic was raised by the AL’s vice president, Lam Heong Sang.
Secretary Raimundo do Rosário conceded the shared perception “that, generally speaking, both residents and tourists that visit the MSAR are unhappy with the quality of the taxi service,” adding that it is precisely with that in mind that authorities are keen on a major review to regulations in order to improve the service.
Speaking for the government, the director of the Transport Bureau (DSAT) Lam Hin San said that the government is paying attention to the issues raised, adding: “we have already created two experimental areas in the Avenida Horta e Costa,” to test new measures penned for implementation.
“The key point is the taxi drivers. Everything comes down to the taxi drivers. But changes on the license system do not depend on them,” Lam Heong Sang stated. He reminded the assembly that license bids that reach MOP900,000-MOP1 million on average do not serve as a good incentive for the sector,” concluding that, “I wish the government would dedicate more resources to incentivizing the sector and not just on ‘the mouse hunt.’ Measures to improve training would be better to elevate the image of the sector.”

I do so agree with the statement “measures to improve training would be better to elevate the image of the sector”……and have raised the matter of training before via MDTimes. To be hoped the various government departments take on board the vital dynamic that improvement via training is a very positive way forward. We all in Macao must focus on the positive aspect of what can be achieved through training. Proper training should cover customer service, attitude/work ethic, knowledge of Macao – its road system, hotels and heritage sites, basic English language ability, instruction within taxis in a variety of languages, raising the bar and wishing to turn a negative toxic situation into a positive and give those who drive taxis the ability for self-improvement via this method. Coloane must be served by taxis and currently it is not. The residents of macau must feel they have a safe and efficient service that is working for them in all residential areas. The relevant government departments are urged to take on board the needs of the community and those in tourism. No visitor to these shores should go away having had a bad experience. No resident, the same. Raise the bar and make the taxi service the best in the Pearl River Delta region. Macau will surely benefit from having adopted a positive approach.