Uber driver faces fine after ditching passenger

CHONGQING - An Uber driver in Chongqing municipality who ejected a passenger from the car will face a fine of up to 100,000 yuan ($15,704) for operating a ride-sharing business without a license, local traffic authorities said on Tuesday.

Chongqing traffic police received a call on Monday from a passenger who claimed to have been forced out of an Uber car after the driver complained of being in a bad mood and asked him to get out after about a kilometer.

The passenger said he had ordered the car with Uber and paid 10 yuan for the fare. When the passenger refused to leave, the driver forced him out but kept his luggage in the car, according to the authorities.

As in many parts of the world, Uber operates in a regulatory gray area in China. Its executives have been summoned by Chinese regulators many times in the past few months to discuss the legality of their operations without taxi licenses.