Macau taxi drivers are set to lobby the government for a tariff increase just before the Chinese New Year, the Macao Taxi Driver Mutual Association announced. According to the association, it has received opinions and requests from “many colleagues” on the call for an increase.
Tony Kuok of the association said that the surcharge for the Lunar New Year is to compensate drivers who have to work holidays, even if they want to stay with their families.
He argued that taxi fares have not increased in six years. The sector attempted a similar adjustment to the tariffs in 2019, however, the government did not implement the increase due to the pandemic.
“Now the price of fuel is more or less MOP14, and even the cost of maintaining the vehicles [is high]. We will detail all this in the proposal to the Transport Bureau,” Kuok said.
Recently, the DSAT has accepted 21 of 40 bids in the public tender for the allocation of regular taxi licenses.
The successful bids aim to secure 10 general taxi licenses of eight-year terms.
The city has been facing a taxi shortage following the reopening of the border, making it difficult for residents and tourists to hail one, particularly during peak hours. LV
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