Malaysia and Singapore's transport ministers outline plans to refresh cross-border taxi and bus travel

Singapore's Jeffrey Siow, Acting Minister for Transport and Malaysia's Minister of Transport Anthony Loke discussed enhancements to the Cross-Border Taxi Scheme, agreeing on several key goals including strengthening enforcement against illegal domestic point-to-point trips.

Singapore and Malaysia's transport ministers have affirmed both countries' commitment to strengthening cross-border transport links, as part of recent meetings at the 12^th Singapore-Malaysia Leaders' Retreat on 4 December (Thursday).

With the land transport links between the two nations being among the busiest in the world, the two ministers acknowledged that further improvements can be made to make cross-border passenger transport services more convenient, and agreed on key enhancements to cross-border taxi services as well as improving the reciprocity of cross-border bus services.

The conversation comes in line with a meeting between Prime Minister of Singapore Lawrence Wong and Prime Minister of Malaysia Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim on the same day, where both prime ministers renewed their commitment to strengthen cooperation across multiple domains - one of which was on the topic of connectivity and transport.

Enhancements to cross-border taxi services

Both transport ministers acknowledged the demand for more convenient transport services, and agreed for the Land Public Transport Agency of Malaysia (Agensi Pengangkutan Awam Darat or APAD), and the Land Transport Authority (LTA) to continue close discussions on enhancements to the Cross-Border Taxi Scheme, to achieve the following outcomes:

• To improve the convenience and efficiency of arranging cross-border rides for both passengers and drivers, both countries will work towards a regulatory regime for cross-border ride-hail and e-hailing platforms.
• To improve convenience for travellers, in addition to taxis being allowed to pick up passengers anywhere in their respective home countries, foreign taxis will also be allowed to drop off passengers anywhere outside their home country. However, foreign taxis can only pick up passengers at designated pick-up points to prevent them from providing local point-to-point services. In addition, the number of pick-up points for ride-hail or e-hailing app bookings will gradually increase. 
• To support enforcement against illegal domestic point-to-point trips, licensed taxis must be clearly identifiable by livery, tamper-proof vehicle plate with predefined prefix and topper, and will also be required to install Singapore’s ERP2 on-board unit for entry into Singapore.
• To protect passengers and other road users, both countries will work towards improving insurance coverage of cross-border taxis and speeding up claims processing in the event of an accident.
• To increase supply of cross-border taxis, both countries will gradually increase the quota for licensed cross-border taxis from the existing 200 to 500 from each country, subject to effective implementation of safeguards against illegal domestic trips and insurance requirements .
  • As a start, each country will provide an additional quota of 100, prioritised for larger and more premium vehicles that can address the needs of larger groups and business travellers.

Aligning regulations on cross-border bus services

Both ministers also recognised that a wider range of services can make bus travel a more attractive option, given that travellers from both countries also rely on cross-border bus services for tourism, including to destinations beyond Johor Bahru. 

In the spirit of reciprocity, the ministers have pressed for APAD and LTA to work towards aligning regulatory regimes so as to enhance cross-border bus services for tourism.

"These enhancements and principles agreed to by both Ministers reflects our continued commitment to improving cross-border connectivity and the commuting experience for travellers between Singapore and Malaysia," stated the Transport Ministries of Singapore and Malaysia. 

"Officials from both countries will keep up their close engagement, and work expeditiously towards an agreement and implementation of enhancements to cross-border taxi and bus services."

Lead image / Minister of Transport of Singapore, Jeffrey Siow Facebook