Chinese State to Launch Ride-Hailing, Transport Platform

Cars clog an expressway during a pre-pandemic evening peak hour in Beijing. File photo: Reuters.

The Chinese state is to launch its own ride-hailing, trucking, transport, railway, ferry and flight services platform, creating what could be rival to tech giants such as Didi.

Chinese state media Beijing Daily reported on Wednesday that the online platform, which has completed internal tests, is expected to integrate more than 90% of the total capacity of the country’s transportation market.

China’s ride-hailing market was dominated by Didi Global which ran afoul of powerful regulator the Cyberspace Administration of China in 2021.

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The 18-month ban on the ride-hailer was lifted on Monday after the company took effective measures to ensure platform safety and data security.

But the report did not give details of why the government was introducing the platform, whether customers would be obliged to use it or whether, crucially, it would compete with existing platforms.

The report did allude, though, to the disorderly expansion of ride-hailing apps and issues of data security.

The state-backed platform, called “Qiang Guo Jiao Tong” – or “Powerful Nation’s Transportation” – will offer people convenient services while maintaining data security and protecting personal privacy, Beijing Daily reported.

Other social media apps such as Wechat, Alipay and Douyin will be integrated into the platform, the report added.

Reuters with additional editing by Sean O’Meara

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Sean O'Meara

Sean O'Meara is an Editor at Asia Financial. He has been a newspaper man for more than 30 years, working at local, regional and national titles in the UK as a writer, sub-editor, page designer and print editor. A football, cricket and rugby fan, he has a particular interest in sports finance.