The existing cross-border scheme has its shortcomings and has room for improvement, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said in a post on Facebook on Tuesday (Sep 2).
“We recognised that the current cross-border scheme can be improved, such as designating more pick-up and drop-off points, and facilitating expedited clearance,” LTA stated, acknowledging that there is demand from Singaporeans travelling to Malaysia which the taxi service is unable to meet.
“This includes large families with young children, elderly Singaporeans visiting relatives in Malaysia, and businessmen travelling across the border for meetings. There are Singaporeans willing to pay for these services, and Singaporean drivers who are keen and able to serve this demand,” said LTA.
The post stated that Acting Minister Jeffrey Siow and Senior Minister of State Sun Xueling had met representatives from the National Taxi Association (NTA), National Private Hire Vehicles Association (NPHVA) and the Singapore-JB Taxi Association alongside LTA last week to discuss cross-border point-to-point travel.
During the meeting, higher quotas, larger capacity vehicles, app-based bookings with partnered platform companies and the importance of enforcement to prevent illegal cross-border taxis were also discussed.
LTA assured the associations that enforcement against foreign vehicles that break laws will be sustained.
Thanking them for their views, LTA said: “Our shared goal is to provide safe and legal options for Singaporean commuters.”
In statements released via Facebook on Tuesday, the NTA and NPHVA said they’d highlighted the challenges of cross-border point-to-point taxi services and proposed several solutions during their meeting with LTA.
“Currently, illegal point-to-point services operate across the border, creating unfair competition and safety risks,” they said. “The existing framework has limitations in passenger matching, drop-off and pick-up points, and clearance efficiency.”
They suggested solutions to these challenges, proposing better passenger matching through ride-hailing apps and public transport lanes for faster taxi clearance, as well as fixed pick-up points to maintain regulatory oversight among other recommendations.
“Our drivers provide reliable service through their local knowledge, established safety protocols, and proper insurance coverage for passengers,” the statement read.
They added that associations “stand ready to partner with authorities to implement solutions that strengthen Singapore’s transport sector,” and thanked the LTA for the “receptive response” to the opportunities identified.
LTA enforcement ramping up
This meeting comes amid a crackdown on illegal private hire services, including illegal cross-border transport services between Singapore and Malaysia.
19 drivers were caught in an operation by LTA and the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority on Aug 5, with another 12 drivers nabbed by LTA on July 29. This followed an operation at Changi Airport on July 18 where 10 drivers were caught.
SMS Sun also stated in a Facebook post on Aug 6 that the LTA has been ramping up enforcement against illegal point-to-point services.
“We have to tackle illegal point-to-point private hire services as these drivers lack the proper license and insurance coverage for passengers,” she wrote.
“Such services put passengers at risk and harms the livelihoods of law-abiding licenced drivers.”
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khooyihang@asiaone.com
