Others News
- Guangdong News
Date: 23-Apr-2007 Sources: (Shenzhen Daily)
MOST of the 23 people who will take part in a public hearing April 30 on a possible taxi fare hike have cast doubts on the plan that ties fares to gas prices.
At a preliminary meeting Friday when the details of the plan were disclosed, all participants said they would welcome a report on the operating costs of taxis, to be provided by the city's taxi industry association.
The participants comprised local residents from different strata of society, including taxi drivers. The hearing was scheduled after the city started to use China III fuels, which are cleaner but more expensive, earlier this month.
Jiang Hong, a participant, asked how taxi companies could stay in business if they 'could not shoulder the extra cost brought by fuel price rises?in the past few years.
'Are they really losing money? What's their profit margin? They should prove to us with figures.'
'If taxi companies are still making a lot of money, they should lower, rather than hike, the fare. We need a report on their financial status and operation conditions,'said Zhang Xingyan, a media representative.
'Some taxi companies got 50-year taxi licenses during auctions at only 120,000 yuan each, and they've operated more than 10 years. They must have got their initial investment back a long time ago,'said Zheng Zuhua, a retired engineer.
'The hearing originally planned for April 30 could be postponed, if the representatives demand a further report on the operating costs of taxi companies,'said Ma Yubin, vice chief of the pricing bureau.
According to a newly proposed scheme, red and yellow taxis operating within the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) will ask for a fuel surcharge and the fare per additional kilometer will increase to 2.5 to three yuan if the price of the No. 93 gasoline rises (See table).
Passenger of green taxis operating outside the SEZ will be charged an extra 30 percent if they hire taxis for more than 10 kilometers, in case drivers cannot find passengers on the way back, the proposed scheme says.
The price of No. 90 gas rose from 3.05 yuan per liter in January 2004 to 4.45 yuan per liter by the end of March this year, putting an extra monthly burden of 1,936 yuan on red and yellow taxis, Du Jun, an official with the taxi industry said.
Taxi companies have lowered the monthly rent paid by taxi drivers by an average of 1,280 yuan since 2005 to reduce their burden. The extra expenses brought by fuel price hikes have so far been shouldered by taxi drivers and companies. It is time passengers give a hand, he said.
'Taxi firms are not as lucrative as you imagine. There are high risks involved. A small taxi firm neared bankruptcy when one of its drivers killed a passer-by in an accident and the company paid 2 million yuan in compensation,'he said.
Shenzhen's taxi fare is among the most expensive in Chinese cities. In 2004, the authorities had planned a hearing on reducing the taxi fare, which was shelved after fuel prices rose dramatically.
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