Imported drivers were involved in around 10 per cent of minibus accidents in Hong Kong, the government has said.
In a written response to the legislature on Wednesday, Secretary for Transport and Logistics Mable Chan said that of 1,115 traffic accidents involving public minibuses from January last year to April this year, 111 cases – or nearly 10 per cent – implicated imported drivers.
In the same 16-month period, there were 554 traffic accidents involving coaches. Among them, 18 involved non-local workers, accounting for around 3 per cent.
The Hong Kong government rolled out schemes to attract non-local workers in 2023 to tackle the labour shortage.
Under the Transport and Logistics Bureau’s scheme, the public minibus sector was allocated 900 quotas to hire non-local drivers, while the coach sector was allocated 800 quotas. Qualified workers will be issued with a two-year work permit.
As of June this year, a total of 832 non-locals have started working as public minibus drivers in Hong Kong after receiving training and passing relevant exams, the bureau told HKFP.
In addition, 336 non-local workers have begun working as local coach drivers and 361 as cross-border coach drivers.
According to a government study in June 2023, the city had around 6,300 local public minibus drivers at that time, and the sector needed an additional 2,000 drivers.
Chan said on Wednesday that the current quotas for imported labour “can only meet about half of the manpower gap,” due to ageing drivers in the minibus and coach sectors.
“At the same time, with the recovery [in] the number of visitors and more frequent exchanges between Hong Kong and the Mainland, we notice that there is a growing demand from citizens and visitors for public transportation,” Chan said, adding that the government will continue to monitor the labour market and review the imported labour scheme.
The transport minister also tried to dispel concerns about non-local drivers.
“According to our observation and feedback from employers, imported drivers are generally experienced drivers with adequate traffic knowledge,” Chan said in the written response. “They are able to handle the road conditions in Hong Kong, delivering steady and high-quality services.”
