Taxi drivers in Chinese city told to pull the plug on car-hailing apps
Jinan cab companies say they will carry out checks and penalise those who don't comply
Taxi companies across Jinan in Shandong province have ordered the city's cab drivers to uninstall car-hailing apps, saying the services have disrupted the market.
The city's 37 taxi companies sent the order in mobile text messages to more than 8,000 drivers on Saturday, the reported yesterday.
"The apps have seriously affected the income of taxi drivers as well as traffic safety. We call on all drivers to uninstall the car-hailing apps from May 30," the message said. The firms will continue sending the message to drivers three times a day for three days via GPS communication devices and WeChat, according to the report.
The companies will also carry out inspections and penalise drivers who do not uninstall the apps.
The crackdown is designed to regulate use of the car-hailing services, one unnamed spokesman from a Jinan taxi company was quoted as saying. The companies did not consider the apps illegal, but believed the services should only be used by licensed taxi drivers.
The apps allow drivers - including those without cab licences - to directly pick up passengers, often at cheaper rates than regular taxis.
One of the biggest car-hailing apps is Didi Dache, which launched in September 2012 and has more than 100 million users on the mainland.
