S'pore & M'sia in talks to let cross-border taxis drop passengers off at final destination instead of designated points: Sun Xueling

Talks between Singapore and Malaysia are being held to allow eligible Malaysian cross-border taxis to drop passengers off at their final destinations in Singapore, instead of designated drop-off points, and for eligible Singaporean taxis to do the same in Johor Bahru, said Senior Minister of State for Transport Sun Xueling in parliament on Wednesday (Oct. 15).

Exploring options to provide greater convenience to consumers

In response to questions about whether the Ministry of Transport (MOT) is looking to facilitate more point-to-point (P2P) transfers between Singapore and Johor Bahru, given the setting up of the Johor-Singapore Economic Zone, Sun acknowledged the demand from commuters for such services.

She added that both MOT and the Land Transport Authority (LTA) have been exploring options to liberalise the existing arrangements in place.

One possible option is to allow Malaysian cross-border taxis to drop passengers off anywhere in Singapore, rather than at designated drop-off points. Likewise, cross-border taxis to Malaysia from Singapore would be able to drop passengers off at any location.

"This will provide greater convenience to commuters from both countries," Sun said.

Cross-Border Taxi Scheme currently in place

Currently, cross-border taxis are only permitted to pick up and drop passengers off at a single designated point respectively - Larkin Sentral in Johor Bahru for Singapore taxis and Ban San Street Terminal in Singapore for Malaysian taxis.

This is under the existing reciprocal Cross-Border Taxi Scheme (CBTS) in place.

Singapore- and Malaysia-registered taxis are the only licensed providers of such cross-border services that are approved by LTA and Malaysia's Land Public Transport Agency.

Each country is currently given a quota of 200 taxis for such services.

Sun stated that the reason for allowing such taxis to only pick up and drop passengers off at designated points is "to minimise foreign taxis cruising around empty and potentially carrying out illegal trips", as well as to ensure that they "do not infringe into the local P2P market".

However, she stated that they intend to identify more pick-up points in both countries to provide commuters with a more convenient travel experience.

"We will discuss options with the Malaysian authorities on a reciprocal basis," she said.

Sun added that they will continue to engage the National Taxi Association (NTA) and the National Private Hire Vehicles Association (NPHVA) to take in their suggestions.

The use of location tracking, including ERP 2.0, and other measures to prevent illegal trips by cross-border taxis within Singapore are also being taken into consideration.

LTA has been conducting enforcement operations against illegal P2P services

Sun said that since July this year, LTA has impounded 107 vehicles whose drivers were caught providing illegal services.

People caught providing illegal ride-hailing services in Singapore can face a fine of up to S$3,000, six months' jail, or both.

Their vehicles may also be forfeited.

Platform workers and members of the public can report illegal ride-hailing services by foreign-registered cars at LTA’s OneMotoring website.

"LTA will continue its enforcement efforts even after enhancements to the existing arrangements are rolled out," Sun affirmed.

Discussions to roll out CBTS to more drivers

In response to Member of Parliament (MP) Ang Wei Neng's question on whether MOT plans to extend the fleet quota of 200 cross-border taxis, Sun said that one of the points of discussion between MOT and Malaysia's Ministry of Transport includes a higher quota of taxis for each country.

Others include the introduction of larger multi-purpose vehicle taxi models, as well as the use of ride-hailing applications to make bookings.

Ang, who is also the chief executive officer (CEO) of taxi operator Strides Premier, asked if there are plans to expand the CBTS to private-hire cars.

Sun said that based on discussions with the NPHVA, this should be "approached cautiously".

"They are conscious that if we should liberalise the cross-border taxi scheme too widely and not have a separate scheme for private-hire vehicles, there could be a situation where (private-hire vehicles) could end up providing illegal P2P services in Singapore," she said.

Sun also emphasised that any vehicle that operates in Singapore, especially those which are foreign, will need to have the necessary decals and livery so that it is "very clear that they are part of a licensed scheme".

Clamping down on illegal ride-hailing services offered via chat groups

Associate Professor Jamus Lim highlighted that such illegal ride-hailing services were not just offered via unauthorised apps, but via chat groups as well.

When asked if MOT is planning to crack down on services hired through chat groups, Sun said that MOT and LTA are looking to obtain "further legal powers" to ensure that online platforms comply with the LTA's removal request for illegal P2P services should the platforms remain unresponsive.

She added that LTA has been conducting operations to infiltrate these chat groups and take action against providers of such illegal services.

Top photos via MDDI/YouTube, Google Maps