China to launch a government-backed ride-hailing platform soon - PingWest

China to launch a government-backed ride-hailing platform soon

China to launch a government-backed ride-hailing platform soon

13 hours ago

Chinese authorities will soon launch a platform designed to integrate key players in China's ride-hailing industry, Beijing Daily reported on Wednesday.

The platform, named "Qiangguo Jiaotong" (强国交通), offers a variety of transport services, including ride-hailing, cargo trucking, road transport, and water transportation.

The service is currently in a trial run and will soon be connected to major Chinese social and payment platforms such as Tencent's instant messaging app WeChat, Alibaba's payment tool Alipay, and ByteDance's short-video app Douyin. 

A special feature of the app is that it offers senior-friendly services, allowing them to call for a ride by making a phone call. 

In addition, the platform also said it would provide customized travel services for employees of state-owned enterprises and institutions to maximize the protection of user data security and personal privacy.

The internal testing page of "Qiangguo Jiaotong"/Photo by Beijing Daily

According to the Beijing Daily, the platform is co-created by “Xuexi Qiangguo” (学习强国) and other relevant departments to address the concerns of data security and disorderly expansion that once existed in the ride-hailing sector. 

Known in English as “Study the Great Nation”, “Xuexi Qiangguo” is an education app run by the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, where people can learn about various things, including the latest news, policies, life hacks, science knowledge, etc. in China.

More than 10 online car-hailing providers have settled on "Qiangguo Jiaotong", the newspaper reported, citing people in charge of the project. In the future, the platform is expected to integrate more than 90% of the total transportation market capacity.

The news comes just two days after Didi announced that it had received permission from Beijing to resume accepting new users for its app after an 18-month freeze. The market share of the ride-hailing giant has reportedly dropped from 90% before the freeze to below 70% now.

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