The Chief Executive in Council today approved increases in the flagfall charge for taxis by $3, and the incremental charge by 10 to 20 cents.

The flagfall charge for the first 2km will rise from $24 to $27 for urban taxis, from $20.50 to $23.50 for New Territories (NT) taxis, and from $19 to $22 for Lantau taxis.

After the flagfall, the incremental charge for the first-tier distance of each 200m will rise from $1.7 to $1.9 for urban taxis, and from $1.5 to $1.7 for NT and Lantau taxis.

The incremental charge for the second-tier distance will rise from $1.2 to $1.3 for urban and NT taxis, and from $1.4 to $1.5 for Lantau taxis.

There will be adjustments to the charge for the waiting time as a result of the increase in incremental charges after flagfall, while the other additional charges will remain unchanged.

The Transport & Housing Bureau emphasised that the Government has taken into account various factors including changes in revenue and operating costs of taxi operators, public acceptability and the fare differential between taxis and other modes of public transport when processing the taxi fare adjustment applications.

As affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and the increasing operating costs, the bureau explained that there was a decrease in the average monthly net income of rentee-drivers of taxis in 2021 after netting out inflation as compared with the 2019 level.

Through increasing drivers' income, the trade hopes that new blood will be attracted to join the industry and it will be encouraged to improve their service and invest more in new facilities to enhance the overall taxi service quality.

While the Government is mindful that the fare increase will bring extra transport expenses to passengers, it has endeavoured to strike a balance among various concerns when processing the fare increase applications, the bureau pointed out.

The amendment will be tabled at the Legislative Council on May 25 for negative vetting and the new fares are expected to take effect on July 17.