This phenomenon in Chinese taxis has attracted the attention of Japanese media
2024-08-27
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Japan's Nikkei Asian Review, August 24, original title: For Chinese taxi drivers, smartphones are as important as seat belts
Taxi (and ride-hailing) drivers in China are facing competition from ride-hailing apps, driverless taxis and even "flying cars," prompting some drivers to use several smartphones at once to compete for customers.
Taxi-hailing software technology has become popular in China since its inception. As of December last year, there were more than 500 million online taxi users in China. As of June 30 this year, a total of 7.126 million online taxi driver licenses were issued across the country, more than double the number three years ago.
Smartphones have become an indispensable item for taxi drivers and online car-hailing drivers. A taxi driver in Shanghai said while looking at a taxi-hailing app: "Recently, most of my customers have been obtained through the Didi platform." Another taxi driver had four smartphones placed in front of his driver's seat. One was used for WeChat to facilitate contact with other drivers, and the other three were used to run various taxi-hailing apps. He said: "We live in an era where customers are found through taxi-hailing apps, so I use multiple smartphones to run multiple taxi-hailing apps.
Back when China's big cities like Beijing and Shanghai lacked the well-developed subway networks they have today, hailing a taxi during rush hour could be a nightmare for many commuters. The popularity of online ride-hailing services has increased the flexibility of drivers' jobs. Master Zhang, who drove a taxi in Shanghai for 14 years and became a Didi driver eight years ago, said: "When I worked for a taxi company, I worked one day and rested the next day. After registering on the Didi platform, I can drive to work every day."
Competition is growing, though. "Taxi fares in Shanghai are relatively higher, so drivers are flocking in from other cities," said Zhang, who now has to work longer hours than when he first started as a Didi driver to earn the income he needs, often driving from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Fierce competition is not the only challenge these drivers face. In addition to driverless taxis, Chinese companies are also making progress in "flying taxis". In February this year, a Chinese "air taxi" startup carried out a demonstration flight with a straight-line distance of about 50 kilometers between Shenzhen and Zhuhai. (Author Tomoko Wakasugi, translated by Ding Ding)
