Private cars offering door-to-door pickup taxi service between Malaysia, Singapore
Illegal cross-border taxi services between Johor Baru and Singapore are impacting legitimate taxi drivers who operate on this route, affecting their livelihoods.
The secretary of the Johor Baru and Singapore City Council Taxi Drivers and Owners Association, Mohd Drus Cheng, has called on the authorities to apprehend drivers offering illegal taxi services using private cars. He expressed concern that these drivers have been able to evade the law for years.
Mohd Drus, 62, noted the popularity of the illegal service is due to the convenience of door-to-door pick-up offered by these private cars.
It is important to note that Malaysia-registered taxis operating on the cross-border route are only permitted to carry passengers between Larkin Sentral and Ban San Street in Singapore.
The passengers using the illegal services consist of local Johor Baru residents working in Singapore, Malaysians visiting Singapore, and Singaporeans coming to Johor Baru.
Mohd Drus added, “These drivers also solicit passengers arriving at Larkin Sentral from other parts of the peninsula, especially foreign tourists going to Singapore. The illegal taxis can be found at the terminal at any time of the day.”
He further revealed that the drivers of these illegal taxis use seven to 12-seater MPVs and charge S$25 (RM85.75) per person for a one-way trip.
One of those affected by this illegal taxi service is M. Manomaneym, a 66-year-old licensed cross-border taxi driver from Malaysia. He mentioned that the best period for drivers like him was during the first six months after the Malaysia-Singapore border reopened in April 2022.
He explained, “Most of my passengers were locals working in Singapore who had to stay there when the border closed in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. They used our service to transport their belongings to their homes in Johor Baru as it was more convenient than using buses.”
However, Manomaneym noticed a shift in preference among locals, as they now opt for the cheaper cross-border bus service. He also expressed frustration about long waiting times at the Singapore border due to the availability of many taxis but few passengers.
Since his permit only allows him to serve the Johor Baru-Singapore route without covering the Johor Baru district, Manomaneym admitted that he has not been earning in Singapore dollars for the past month as he always returns empty after dropping off passengers from Johor Baru.
A Singaporean taxi driver, known as Fauziah, highlighted the advantage that Singaporean cross-border taxi drivers have over their Malaysian counterparts. She explained that while Malaysian drivers face restrictions, Singaporean drivers are allowed to transport passengers within the republic and offer door-to-door pick-up services from passengers’ homes to Larkin Sentral and vice versa.
Fauziah also voiced her support for the Malaysian authorities to take action against illegal cross-border taxi drivers, particularly those operating at JB Sentral, where many visitors from Singapore enter Johor Baru by bus.
Credit: The Star : Metro Feed
