Didi launches taxi-hailing in Japan ahead of major Chinese holiday

China’s ride-hailing giant is revving up to service Japan, starting with its second biggest city – Osaka. A press release states that Didi launches taxi-hailing service today in Osaka and the Senshu area, including Kansai International Airport.

Didi Japan, a joint venture with Japanese conglomerate SoftBank, seeks to cater to the country’s taxi market, the third biggest in the world with 1.6 billion annual passengers. Osaka alone has 8.8 million residents and will be the biggest international city Didi has tackled so far.

The launch comes just ahead of China’s fall Golden Week holiday, which begins on National Day (October 1) and ends October 7. According to the press release, Didi Japan’s taxi-hailing service will accommodate travelers from mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, who can hail taxis in Osaka, access Chinese-Japanese text translation, and get “bilingual customer support” via their apps.

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