At such a time node, it is more appropriate and necessary to discuss and summarize the implementation effect of the new special car policy.
It has been half a year since the implementation of the new car-hailing policy in Guangzhou. Recently, the Guangzhou Public Culture Observatory held a special seminar on the implementation effect of the new car-hailing policy in Guangzhou, inviting deputies to the National People’s Congress, members of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference of Guangdong Province, deputies to the National People’s Congress and relevant lawyers and experts to put forward suggestions on the implementation of the new car-hailing policy. The seminar also released the "Evaluation Report on the Implementation Effect of the New Car-hailing Policy in Guangzhou" (hereinafter referred to as the "Report"). (Nanfang Daily, June 19)
The implementation of the new policy on online car-hailing in Guangzhou for half a year means that both the online car-hailing market and passengers have completed the running-in and adaptation to the policy. At such a time node, it is more appropriate and necessary to discuss and summarize the implementation effect of the new policy on special cars.
The "Report" shows that due to the decrease in vehicles and drivers, it is "difficult" and "expensive" for citizens to take a taxi. The survey data shows that during the morning and evening peak driving period, the average waiting time for calls from Guangzhou citizens has doubled, and more than 40% of the demand for ride-hailing calls cannot be met. At the same time, the distance and time for receiving orders for vehicles have also increased significantly. According to incomplete statistics, the average waiting distance is more than 1.5 kilometers, an increase of 35%. The decrease in vehicles and drivers, in addition to the decrease in subsidies for online car-hailing platforms, is obviously directly related to the New Deal, which has raised the entry threshold for online car-hailing and restricted the market supply of online car-hailing.
According to the Guangzhou Municipal Traffic Commission, as of June 8, 2017, Guangzhou has issued 2467 online car-hailing driver licenses; received 9,853 applications for online car-hailing vehicle transportation licenses (based on the number 500,000 registered online car-hailing drivers, the application ratio is less than 2%). With the gradual implementation of the new policy, more online car-hailing cars will withdraw from operation, and the trend of "difficult" and "expensive" may further intensify.
For example, the average daily passenger traffic of taxis in Guangzhou has rebounded from the lowest point of 1.54 million passengers to the current 1.71 million passengers. But taxis are obviously unable to fully digest the social travel demand transferred by the new policy of online car-hailing, and they are also facing the hidden danger of declining service quality. Just recently, the Guangzhou traffic law enforcement department informed the media of the investigation and punishment of taxi violations. Since 2017, Guangzhou has investigated and dealt with 4,868 cases of various taxi violations, an increase of 67.2% compared with the same period in 2016. The sharp increase in the number of taxi violations, in addition to the reason of lax management, some online car-hailing drivers joined the taxi industry in the form of "non-editor" because they did not meet the requirements of the New Deal, and the decline in the market "catfish effect" caused by online car-hailing, I am afraid it is also very important. In fact, the number of "non-editor" drivers who violated the rules accounted for the highest proportion of the total number of taxi violations.
From the above, it can be seen that the impact of the new policy on online car-hailing is all-round. From changes in the way passengers travel, to the supply of the online car-hailing market, to the regulation of the taxi market, it can be said that the whole body is affected. This also inspires that the evaluation of the social effect of the new policy on online car-hailing should have a "global perspective". The high threshold for online car-hailing is mainly based on security considerations, but as experts have pointed out, the guarantee of security can be fully leveraged by Internet technology, without having to rely too much on access barriers. For example, the inspection of the driver’s own quality can be carried out by the financial credit information system and the public security identity management system and the third-party platform integration for information sharing and identification; the safety of the transportation vehicle condition should be reviewed by the public security vehicle management department’s annual review system and the third-party platform integration for information sharing and identification; the safety of the driver’s driving process and behavior can be confirmed by the collection of the driving process data (including facial recognition, etc.) and the collection of passenger opinions.
The new policy of online car-hailing has triggered a chain reaction, and Guangzhou is not an exception. In some places, due to strict restrictions on household registration, license plates, displacement, wheelbase, etc., "difficult to take a taxi" and "expensive to take a taxi" have shown signs of re-emergence, and "black cars" have become more and more. Not only will passenger travel needs and user experience be affected, but the management cost of the market will also increase. When evaluating the social effects of the new policy of online car-hailing, only by taking these factors into account can a more objective evaluation be obtained. With the end of the running-in period between the new policy of online car-hailing and the market, it is necessary for all localities to examine what changes the new policy of online car-hailing has brought to people’s travel, and how much sense of gain the people really enjoy.