Shanghai has published the draft Shanghai Taxi Regulations for public comment, which ran from 24 October to 7 November 2026. The Standing Committee of the Shanghai Municipal People's Congress says the draft would replace the city's 1995 taxi management regulations. It covers both street-hail taxis and app-based ride-hailing.
Robotaxis
The draft supports the safe and orderly use of autonomous driving in the taxi sector in line with the law. Transport and public security authorities would provide regulatory guidance and services. It also encourages the use of big data, blockchain and AI in taxi services and their oversight. IBTimes notes that this sets a policy direction. Licensing, safety oversight and the details of commercial operation will depend on the final text and how it is implemented.
Platforms and pricing
According to People's Daily Online and IBTimes, the draft would:
- bar ride-hailing platforms from using data, algorithms or platform rules to charge different prices for the same service on equivalent terms;
- keep government-guided fares for street-hail taxis and leave ride-hailing fares mainly to the market, with reference price ranges or government guidance possible where needed;
- require platforms to file changes to their pricing rules with the city 30 days in advance;
- require platforms to show their pricing, dispatch and income-sharing rules and their maximum commission rate on the app's home page, and to tell drivers the fare and commission after every trip;
- let the transport authority set a cap on the total number of taxis;
- set an eight-year term for taxi operating rights.
Penalties
Drivers who refuse passengers could be fined RMB 500 to 5,000 and suspended for 15 days. Taxi companies and platforms responsible for drivers in serious cases could be fined RMB 5,000 to 50,000. Unclean or smelly vehicles could bring fines of RMB 500 to 5,000.
Why it matters financially
The draft gives no estimate of the robotaxi market or of compliance costs. The fines it sets out are modest. The commercial weight lies elsewhere: a city-level legal basis for robotaxis in China's largest commercial city would support scaled paid services by robotaxi operators and their partners. Fleet caps, the 30-day pricing filing and the commission disclosure rules would limit how platforms set prices and manage margins.