Vehicles offering taxi services on technology platforms such as GrabTaxi and Uber must place a “TAXI” sign on their roof when on the road, the Hanoi People’s Committee has proposed.

The move is part of a draft regulation on road transport prepared to collect opinions from the general public and relevant agencies and organizations.

The draft also regulates that Uber and GrabTaxi vehicles must comply with specific traffic laws in place for taxies, in order to reduce congestion. 

The Ministry of Transport (MoT) recently rejected Uber’s application to operate on a trial basis for a second time in Vietnam. 

The company applied for a license after local regulators outlawed its smartphone app-based services in November 2015, due mainly to its failure to establish an independent legal entity in Vietnam.

Market regulators declared that the company behind the ride-sharing service that controls Uber in Vietnam should be held responsible for the app rather than its Vietnamese business unit, which has yet to be recognized as a legal entity by local authorities.

Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi transport authorities detected many cars using the Uber mobile phone app for business, in violation of the law. MoT, therefore, asked Uber Vietnam to cease providing the app.

Transport authorities have also asked Uber Vietnam to make changes to its app by registering itself as licensed ride services, apart from existing licensed services such as “consulting and management” and “market research and public opinion polling”.  

Deputy Head of the Vietnam Directorate for Roads, Ms. Phan Thi Thu Hien, previously told VET that during the development of transport activities with new kinds of transportation, users’ rights will be placed center stage.

“The draft decree officially puts such unconventional taxies under authorized management for the first time, to create healthier competition among transport firms,” she said.

VN Economic Times