SINGAPORE – Singapore and Malaysia are talking about allowing Malaysian taxis to drop off passengers anywhere in Singapore rather than at a designated spot, and for Singapore taxis to do likewise in Johor Bahru, said Senior Minister of State for Transport Sun Xueling.
Relaxing this restriction under the Cross-Border Taxi Scheme would provide greater convenience to commuters from both countries, Ms Sun told Parliament on Oct 15.
The scheme allows a licensed fleet of up to 200 taxis from each country to ferry passengers to and fro.
Currently, these taxis are allowed to pick up and drop off passengers at one designated point in each country – Larkin Sentral in Johor Bahru for Singapore taxis, and Ban San Street Terminal in Rochor for Malaysian taxis.
Singapore’s Ministry of Transport (MOT) and its Malaysian counterpart have also been discussing a higher quota of taxis for each country, the introduction of larger taxis and the use of ride-hailing apps to make taxi bookings.
Ms Sun said these discussions are a result of “a lot of unmet demand” from commuters, especially those with children and the elderly, who want to travel more frequently across the border for shopping trips, holidays, or to visit family.
As part of the review of the Cross-Border Taxi Scheme, Ms Sun said MOT will consult platform worker associations, including the National Taxi Association (NTA), to make sure that fares for cross-border trips are viable.
Ms Sun was responding to a question by Mr Ang Wei Neng (West Coast-Jurong West GRC), who is also the chief executive of taxi operator
Strides Premier, which offers cross-border taxi rides
.
He had asked how MOT plans to guard against the undercutting of fares, given that “the cost of operating a taxi in Malaysia is a small fraction of what it costs… in Singapore”.
Ms Yeo Wan Ling (Punggol GRC), who is executive secretary of the National Transport Workers’ Union and adviser to the NTA and the National Private Hire Vehicles Association, also raised this point, asking how the scheme can remain relevant and support the livelihoods of 200 Singapore cross-border taxi drivers.
“We know that there are cost disparities between the cost of operating as well as driving in Singapore versus Johor Bahru, so we’ll take these into consideration when setting fares,” Ms Sun said.
The Cross-Border Taxi Scheme, launched in 2022, provides a regulated, legal and safer alternative for cross-border travel between Singapore and Malaysia, in response to demand not met by existing public transport.
Checks by The Straits Times earlier in October found that individuals and companies had been able to book chartered car rides between Singapore and Johor Bahru with ease until enforcement was stepped up recently.
Some continue to do so, as such rides are more convenient than taking a cross-border taxi before transferring to a local taxi or private-hire car after crossing the border for the rest of the journey.
The Government will also go after those who offer illegal rides at lower costs, Ms Sun said, adding that enforcement against this group will be strict.
Since July, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) has impounded 107 vehicles whose drivers were caught providing illegal services. LTA will continue its enforcement efforts even after enhancements to the existing arrangements are rolled out, Ms Sun said.
To minimise foreign taxis cruising around empty and potentially carrying out illegal trips, they will be allowed to pick up passengers only at designated points so that they do not infringe on the local point-to-point market, Ms Sun added.
For the convenience of commuters, more pick-up points in both Johor Bahru and Singapore will be identified, said Ms Sun. She added: “We will discuss options with the Malaysian authorities on a reciprocal basis.”
Workers’ Party MP Jamus Lim (Sengkang GRC) asked whether MOT has “a sense of the pervasiveness” of illegal point-to-point services being offered via chat groups as well as apps, and how it plans to crack down on this.
Ms Sun said that the LTA has been infiltrating chat groups offering illegal point-to-point services to take action against providers.
“Unfortunately, for operational reasons, I can’t share more details, but rest assured that the LTA is aware of the situation,” she said.
The MOT and LTA are also looking to strengthen legal powers to make sure online platforms comply with requests to remove illegal point-to-point services, said Ms Sun.
Ms Yeo asked how MOT will use technology to ensure fair competition between Singapore and Malaysian taxis, given the “fare and exchange rate differences”.
next-generation Electronic Road Pricing (ERP 2.0) system
can be used for location tracking, to make sure that foreign vehicles do not conduct illegal point-to-point trips in Singapore.
Since 2023, Singapore-registered vehicles have progressively been fitted with on-board units (OBUs) which allow their locations to be tracked under ERP 2.0. But Malaysian vehicles entering Singapore are not currently required to have an OBU fitted.
