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Dec. 3 (NBD) -- Chinese ride-hailing platform Didi Chuxing's carpool service remains suspended after Chinese regulators said the app still has "major safety hazards".

The authorities announced Tuesday the result of the investigation into Didi Chuxing and another seven ride-hailing companies starting from September of 2018.

A total of 33 operational problems for Didi Chuxing were listed by the Ministry of Transportation, including the hidden danger for carpooling service products, hiring illegal ride-hailing drivers, weak emergency management, and security risk of Internet information.

The company was asked to offer a plan with specific measures to eliminate risks within two weeks.

Besides, the authorities also gave administrative penalties on the firm's violation of safety rules.

On August 24, a 20-year-old woman who used Didi Chuxing's Hitch service was raped and murdered by her driver, the second killing of female passengers since this year.

The cases provoked a public outcry against the carpooling service. Didi Chuxing suspended Hitch three days after the incident.

The firm's chief executive Cheng Wei and president Jean Liu jointly posted an open letter on August 28, stating that Didi Chuxing will keep safety in the first place and build a mechanism for user safety protection with China's public security department.

As a young company, Didi still needs to work on many shortcomings and imperfections that have brought great concerns, said the letter.

Cheng later revealed Didi Chuxing will invest 140 million yuan (20.2 million U.S. dollars) to enhance safety service team building, and develop a customer service center with up to 8,000 employees by the end of this year.

Other Chinese ride-haling platforms have also terminated the carpool service.

The new investigation is believed to reshape the entire ride-hailing market.

Compared with Didi Chuxing, other ride-hailing apps have their own advantages and opportunities for expansion, Wei Dong, CEO of Shouqi Limousine & Chauffeur, mentioned, adding that their future development depends on the strategies they would adopt.

As the world's top transportation platform, Didi Chuxing has 21 million drivers and more than 450 million users. The firm's investors include Japan's SoftBank and Apple.

Currently, more players, such as online travel service provider Ctrip.com, web mapping firm AutoNavi and auto manufacturer SAIC Motor, are making deployment in the niche sector.

While food and lifestyle service platform Meituan Dianping has given up further exploration of the market, Alibaba-backed bike-sharing company Hellobike decided to launch its ride-hailing service in October this year, about one month after the start-up changed its brand name into Hello Chuxing.

Email: zhanglingxiao@nbd.com.cn