Jeffrey Siow meets taxi associations to review cross-border service to JB, says improvements can be made

The current scheme on cross-border taxi service leaves demand unmet and improvements can be made, the Singapore government and representatives from industry associations recognised.

This comes after a meeting on the issue took place last week between the stakeholders.

Present at the meeting were Acting Minister for Transport Jeffrey Siow, Senior Minister of State Sun Xueling, the Ministry of Transport (MOT) and the Land Transport Authority (LTA).

The industry was represented by members from the National Taxi Association (NTA), National Private Hire Vehicles Association (NPHVA) and the Singapore-JB Taxi Association.

The content of the meeting was briefly shared in a Facebook post by LTA.

Unmet demands with current scheme: LTA

In the post, LTA wrote that the participants recognised that the current cross-border taxi service to Johor Bahru, Malaysia could not meet all demand such as by large families with children, the elderly and businessmen travelling for meetings.

It noted that there are Singaporeans who are willing to pay for services to take them across the border and Singaporean drivers who are keen to take on such jobs.

On improvements to the current cross-border scheme, designating more pick-up and drop-off points as well as facilitating expedited clearance were two examples recognised by participants of the meeting.

Higher quotas, allowing larger capacity vehicles and partnering platform companies for app-based bookings were also discussed.

According to LTA, the meeting also touched on the importance of enforcement, including the use of location tracking to prevent illegal trips by cross-border taxis within Singapore.

The industry representatives were also assured by LTA that it would sustain enforcement efforts against those who flout the law.

"As we advance discussions with our Malaysian counterparts to find better ways of serving commuters, the support of NTA and NPHVA will help us to also protect the livelihoods of our local taxi and private hire car drivers," LTA wrote.

Revamp needed: Associations

Commenting on the meeting, the NTA and NPHVA thanked the government for their "receptive response to the cross-border transport opportunities."

The associations similarly recognised the unmet demand, but noted that solutions will have to address the requirements of both countries.

They wrote that an uneven operating environment exists due to differences in car prices, business costs, exchange rates and cost of living.

"Currently, illegal point-to-point services operate across the border, creating unfair competition and safety risks," the trade associations said while recognising the limitations of the existing framework.

They asked the government during the meeting to revamp the current cross-border taxi scheme, including allowing passengers to be dropped off anywhere while maintaining designated pick-up spots and standardising the technical specifications of cross-border taxis.

"We are pleased that the MOT has agreed to review the cross-border taxi service with the Malaysian government," the associations wrote.

They affirmed their readiness to partner with the authorities to implement solutions and create a more sustainable model that "benefits passengers, workers, and Singapore's economy."

Current scheme

The current cross-border taxi scheme allows for up to 200 taxis each from Singapore and Malaysia to operate across the border.

Licensed taxis can pick-up or drop-off passengers from anywhere within their countries, but must only use designated terminals once across the border.

These terminals are Ban San Street Terminal in Singapore and Johor Larkin Sentral Terminal in Malaysia.

Fares from Singapore to Malaysia are S$60 per taxi or S$15 per pax.

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Top image via LTA