‘I jumped out’ of Hong Kong taxi once because of the smell: transport adviser
Transport Advisory Committee’s Stephen Cheung also urges public to share opinions with him on how authorities can regulate ride-hailing apps

A top government adviser has bemoaned his own experience of being put off by the smell of tobacco smoke while in a Hong Kong cab, revealing that the taxi industry has admitted it needs to improve service quality to stay ahead of the competition.
Professor Stephen Cheung Yan-leung, chairman of the Transport Advisory Committee, said the number of complaints against cabbies from passengers had yet to decrease, without revealing any of the latest statistics.
“I remember taking a taxi once, and as soon as I got in, there was a very strong smell of smoke,” he told the media on Sunday.
“I guess the driver had just finished smoking, and immediately threw away his cigarette as soon as he saw a customer, turned on the air conditioning and closed the window.”
Cheung recalled the smell being so pungent that he ended up “getting into the car from the left side, just to jump out again on the right” shortly before the end of a 10-minute journey.
The government adviser also discussed a recent meeting with an influential taxi union, saying he had received two petitions from taxi drivers discussing how authorities could regulate ride-hailing apps since then.