The Ministry of Transport ("MOT") and the National Development and Reform Commission ("NDRC") have recently issued the Opinions on Deepening the Road Transport Price Reform (the "Opinions"), with effect from January 1, 2020.
The goals of the price reform set in the Opinions state that by 2020, prices in the competitive fields and processes of road transport will be basically liberalized, the market-oriented road transport pricing mechanism and the scientific, standardized and transparent road transport price control regime will take shape. To this end, the Opinions lay out five tasks, including deepening the market-oriented reform of road passenger transport prices, and roll out four measures, including regulating government's pricing behavior. Among others, the Opinions require that charges for services offered for passengers' free choice at fully competitive passenger transport stations for shuttle buses and for public buses, shall be regulated by the market in principle; and charges for basic services offered at less competitive passenger transport stations for shuttle buses, rural passenger transport stations, and passenger transport stations for public buses shall be subject to the government-guided prices in principle. For passenger transport of shuttle buses subject to government-guided prices, the upper limit on the ticket price should be specified on the tickets (including electronic tickets) or published via the ticketing channels.