Taxi fares in Shanghai will be more expensive during rush hours on weekdays and on certain national holidays, starting from January 15.

The new taxi price scheme was determined after public hearings and soliciting of opinions from related parties and aims to improve the quality of taxi service and retain the pool of taxi drivers, the city's road transport bureau said on Tuesday.

The municipal government has given its consent to the hike, the bureau said.

For every kilometer beyond 3 kilometers and under 15km, the charge will be increased from the current 2.5 yuan (40 US Cents) to 2.7 yuan, according to the new scheme.

When the car speed is under 12km per hour or if the passenger asks the taxi driver to park somewhere while waiting for him or her, the charge for every 4 minutes will equal to that for 1.5km – instead of 1km at the moment – beyond 3km.

The above price can be edged up 5 percent from 7am to 10am and from 4pm to 7pm on weekdays and down 5 percent from 10am to 4pm on the same days, according to the scheme.

The charge for the first 3km of every taxi ride remains unchanged. For some taxis it's 14 yuan and for others 16 yuan from 5am to 11pm. The charge for the time period from 11pm to 5am the next day is 30 percent higher.

For every kilometer beyond 15km the charge will still be 50 percent higher.

This means that if you take a taxi for 15km now, with the first 3km charged at 16 yuan and with no surcharge for waiting time, you will pay 46 yuan, and after January 15, you will pay 50 yuan during morning and evening hours on weekdays, about 46 yuan between 10am to 4pm on the same days, and 48.4 yuan otherwise.

Surcharge for holidays

The new scheme also includes a surcharge for certain national holidays.

The surcharge for each ride during the Spring Festival holiday will be 10 yuan, and the charge will be 5 yuan during the National Day and Labor Day holidays. If the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday happens to join the National Day holiday, the surcharge will be also applied on that day.

Taxi drivers don't need to adjust the meter for different time periods manually, and the passengers will be notified of the prices via the light on the top of the taxis, the taxi-hailing software and taxi stations, the bureau said.

The new scheme only applies to taxis that have access to all parts of the city. Price adjustment for those restricted to certain areas will be determined by district governments.