Taxi Drivers Hold Slow-drive Protest Against Uber

An alliance of taxi drivers held a slow-drive protest near the government's headquarters in Admiralty on Thursday, demanding that the government ban the ride-hailing service Uber in the city.

Around 40 cabs circled around Admiralty and Wan Chai, while around 60 others were parked outside the government's headquarters in protest.

Taxi drivers say the Transport Department has been turning a blind eye since 2014 to unlicensed Uber cars – which they say have significantly affected their business.

The alliance submitted a petition demanding a meeting with Transport Secretary, Frank Chan.

Wong Yu-ting, a representative of the alliance, said the government has not provided them with a proper response so far.

“We are very unhappy with the Transport Department’s response today because the secretary did not come out to listen to our views and they didn’t agree to hold a meeting with us. We will plan further action if the government does not give us a proper response by next Tuesday”, he said.

The alliance earlier threatened to paralyse Central with "thousands of cabs" if the government did not address their grievances.