Hangzhou Police Issue Special Licenses in Effort to Rein in Reckless Deliverymen

(Beijing) — Hangzhou is cracking down on sometimes-reckless fast-food couriers, requiring safety classes to get an optional special driver’s license that will allow them to stay on the road when they violate traffic laws.

The optional licenses are a first in China, as police and other authorities increasingly worry about the risks that speeding delivery scooters pose.

Armies of deliverymen race against the clock because they have to pick up meals from various restaurants and drop them off at homes and offices in about 30 minutes, regardless of traffic conditions. Couriers aren’t tipped in China, and are paid less than 10 yuan ($1.45) for each order. But companies will deduct a part of this meager pay if consumers file complaints of cold meals arriving late.

Chinese media have sporadic reports of couriers injuring — and even killing — people. In one high-profile case in August, a deliveryman and leading takeout platform Ele.me were fined 160,000 yuan ($23,400) for hitting and seriously injuring a teenager in Beijing.

The food delivery business has exploded into a 180-billion-yuan-a-year industry in the past three years. There are now more than 1 million takeout delivery couriers in China, according to figures published by consultancy iResearch in 2016. This situation has created a constant headache for the traffic police.

Hangzhou police say the special “food delivery boy” licenses, issued to over 1,400 drivers so far, will help educate them of the traffic codes and help to keep track of violations.

Deliverymen in the eastern city, home to large internet companies like Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and NetEase Inc., have to study a manual, watch educational videos, sign a pledge to refrain from breaking traffic rules, and even pass a test in order to get a license. Many were willing to do that because of the convenience the license grants them if an accident or violation occurs.

Scooter drivers with such a license are allowed to carry on with their urgent deliveries even when they are found speeding, driving in the wrong lane in the direction or running red lights. They will be exempt from immediate punishment, which usually consists of attending more educational courses and assisting traffic police with their duties for a few hours, and allowed select a more convenient time within the next seven days to fulfill their obligations.

License holders with five violations will need to apply for a new license.

Many see the special license as a smart step by Hangzhou traffic administrators to keep reckless takeout delivery drivers in check, while others say the complicated paperwork involved may lead to extra fees being slapped on drivers and delivery companies in the future.

“As long as the authorities don’t start charging fees for these licenses, it seems like a good idea to better educate drivers to me,” one Weibo user using the alias “ZongshujiV” said on Tuesday.

Contact reporter April Ma (fangjingma@caixin.com)