Enforcement against traffic enhanced before Labour Day

Police on Friday said they had enhanced enforcement to combat traffic violations associated with taxis, tour buses and illegal cabs at renowned tourist sites as part of preparations for the upcoming Labour Day Golden Week holiday next week. Speaking at a press briefing near the Peak Tram station in Central, Inspector Lai Cheuk-fung said during the first three months of the year, police had received 23 complaints about taxis, with grievances about over charging commonly cited. Lai said officers would enhance their enforcement efforts starting from Wednesday this week to May 8. He said police would also strengthen education by introducing "taxi ambassadors" to provide taxi-related information to travellers. "Apart from enforcement, we would like to introduce a multi-agency approach to tackle this problem. Apart from tackling the problem in Hong Kong, we would like to consolidate Hong Kong's place as an international tourist destination. And this is our ultimate goal," he explained. Meanwhile, senior investigator at the Travel Industry Authority, Mark Cheng, said authorities would beef up their manpower to monitor famous tourist spots and border control points, as around 680 mainland tour groups are expected to visit Hong Kong during Golden Week.