 |
Let's get one thing straight: the public loves Uber.
That's my conclusion from friends and neighbours who have used the service. I'm sure a government consultation would confirm this.
So why is the government sending the police to entrap Uber drivers? ("22 Uber drivers arrested in undercover Hong Kong police operation", May 24). What a waste of police time and our public money.
The civil service is there to serve we the public. Instead of harassing Uber they ought to be working with the company to regularise its popular service.
Legco's latest workaround of a premium franchised taxi service seems aimed for the fat cats, given the minimum investment of 200 cars, at a cost of at least $HK 60 million.
The Transport Department has a sorry history with new technologies. It has banned electric bicycles, for example, because it couldn't be bothered to update its antiquated regulations.
If Hong Kong wants to retain what's left of our increasingly tattered reputation for efficiency and modernity, the government needs to call off the police and work with Uber. We would then join the other 800+ forward-thinking cities who have embraced modern technology.
Yours, etc,
PF
PF
