The taxi industry has called off a strike next month to push for a crackdown on illegal ride-hailing services, after meeting with transport officials on Wednesday morning.

The Hong Kong Tele-call Taxi Association had earlier threatened five days of industrial action from March 5, saying their business was seriously hurt by their unlicensed rivals.

The association's chairman, Wong Yu-ting, apologised after the meeting for causing "unease" to the public.

He added authorities should be given time to take enforcement action, so a strike was no longer necessary.

But Wong maintained the government should take action against ride-hailing service providers.

"The number of arrestees (ride-hailing drivers) is actually not the top priority. Most importantly, they should take immediate action to prosecute the drivers, so as to deter others from doing so," Wong told reporters.

Ryan Wong, chairman of the Hong Kong Taxi Council, described the meeting as positive and constructive.

He said the government would submit a legislative proposal within this year to regulate ride hailing platforms.

"The ride-hailing platforms must ensure all the vehicles hailed from their platforms must have legal licence," Wong said.

He also hoped the government would require ride-hailing service providers to attend professional training beforehand, and have their vehicles undergo inspections annually.

Transport Commissioner Angela Lee said the government was looking at next steps.

"The government is now studying with the Department of Justice on fine-tuning existing laws to optimise the enforcement process," she added.