More than 5,000 cabs in the capital are being installed with global
positioning systems (GPS) to help improve services, the Beijing
Traffic Bureau has announced.
The move will be the city's first, large-scale GPS operation and
aims to improve the efficiency of taxis by notifying drivers about
traffic problems and service demand, according to bureau
officials.
It
is believed that the new devices will also cut down on the number
of taxis that are vacant by around 30 percent.
The capital now has some 68,000 cabs.
The new device should also bring more convenience for residents
living in the city's suburbs, where fewer taxis operate. Residents
requiring a taxi will in the future be able to call a taxi through
the GPS network at the Beijing Municipal Taxi Network Control
Center, which was jointly launched earlier this month, said Jinjian
taxi company, one of the city's GPS initiators.
A
huge electronic screen that has been set up in the center, in the
southern part of the city, shows the location of hundreds of taxis
which have GPS devices installed, thus making it easier for
customers to locate a cab.
The application was initiated by Jinjian and Yinjian taxi companies
earlier this month, with the support of the municipal
government.
So
far, only a few dozen taxis in the company have been installed with
GPS devices, said Yinjian company.
Whether the application will be further used and expanded to other
areas in the country largely depends on the results of the first
5,000 taxis that are installed with the device by the end of the
year, said a spokesman for Yinjian company, who also said that a
further schedule is already being discussed.
If
all goes well, a further 5,000 cabs will be installed with GPS next
March.
(China Daily December
17, 2001)