Andrew Yiu* is at a crossroads about whether to continue his job as a full-time Uber driver, as the Hong Kong government plans to regulate ride-hailing platforms and impose requirements such as vehicle age limits.

The city is set to legalise ride-hailing platforms in the first half of next year, ending over a decade of operating in a grey area.

Among affected stakeholders are ride-hailing drivers like Yiu, who has earned HK$32,000 to HK$36,000 (US$4,076 to US$4,586) a month since joining Uber almost four years ago with his Tesla vehicle.

“I work as an Uber driver because it gives me the flexibility of when to work, so I can be with my children when needed,” he said.

“But the proposed ride-hailing regulatory framework seems not very friendly to drivers. It is still not clear whether I need to buy a new car to work after my current one turns seven years old.”

His concerns persist even after Secretary for Transport and Logistics Mable Chan acknowledged last week that there was divided public opinion on the seven-year vehicle age limit for ride-hailing and said she would listen more to feedback.