Chongqing Evening Newspaper reported that local cab drivers are objecting to a code of higher service standards that the local government announced on 1 December.

The code is an adapted version of national standards for taxi services that were announced in May this year. They include the requirement for taxi drivers to speak Mandarin Putonghua, refrain from smoking, spitting and fly tipping, and offer help with customers’ luggage.

The newspaper carried out a straw poll of 30 local taxi drivers on 16 December. None was willing to speak Mandarin for fear of being ridiculed, while eight said that they would do so only if the voluntary code was made compulsory. The majority, 26 of them, were not willing to help with luggage, saying it would delay the prospect of finding new customers.

Some major taxi companies have acknowledged the scale of the challenge ahead but want to incorporate the national standards into their internal performance evaluation programme from next year so that within two to three years, taxi services in Chongqing will rise to national standards.

Taxi services in Chongqing are among the worst of any major city in China. Driver malpractices are rampant, such as disregarding traffic regulations and refusing to take customers if they only want to travel a short distance.