There are about 18,000 taxi licences in Hong Kong and they haven't made a new one since 1994. You know what has multiplied since 1994? Everything else. Population, ride-hail apps, the number of times you've stood on Nathan Road at midnight watching taxis sail past with the light off because the driver "doesn't like your direction." Meanwhile a chunk of those 18,000 licences sit with owners who never drive a single shift. They just rent the plate out and collect. It's basically landlording, except the flat is a Toyota Crown Comfort and the tenant works nights breathing your exhaust.

So now there's a promised enforcement push, aimed partly at the platforms and drivers operating outside the rules. Fine, good, do it. But here's the bit nobody in government wants to say plainly: the reason ride-hail exploded here isn't because Hong Kong people love apps, it's because the taxi trade got comfortable. Refuse fares, no aircon, cash only, vibes-based meter compliance. You crack down on the workaround and leave the actual product broken, people just go back to standing on the corner getting ignored. Fix why we all started calling a car on our phone in the first place, then talk to me about enforcement.