Govt looking to get more legal powers to crack down on illegal online cross-border services: Sun Xueling

The Ministry of Transport (MOT) and Land Transport Authority (LTA) are looking to obtain further legal powers to curb illegal carpooling services on chat groups, said Senior Minister of State for Transport Sun Xueling in Parliament on Wednesday (Oct 15). 

This means that online platforms will have to comply with LTA’s requests to remove illegal point-to-point services, she added

Sun was responding to Workers’ Party MP Jamus Lim’s (Sengkang GRC) question on whether MOT has plans to crack down on cross-border services that operate on chat groups.

She said that the Government can order the take down of online content suspected to be used for illegal activities, such as scams and malicious cyber activities.  

Under the Online Criminal Harms Act, non-compliance will lead to further enforcement actions such as blocking access to content or removing the mobile application.

Meanwhile, LTA has also been conducting operations to infiltrate chat groups that advertise illegal point-to-point services, and to take action against these providers.

"Unfortunately, for operational reasons, I can’t share more details, but rest assured that LTA is aware of the situation," Sun added.

Before today’s session, PAP MPs Yeo Wan Ling (Punggol GRC) and Ang Wei Neng (West Coast-Jurong West GRC) had filed questions about cross-border services, and how the livelihoods of Singapore drivers will be taken care of.

Sun said in Parliament that besides the possibility of a higher quota of taxis for each country and introducing ride-hailing apps for bookings, discussions with the Malaysian authorities also include whether to allow Malaysian and Singaporean taxis to pick up and drop off passengers anywhere in both countries.

"This is a demand, a need that has been expressed by commuters," she added.

Sun said that the current arrangement is so that foreign taxis do not infringe into the local point-to-point market.

This will ensure that there are not too many foreign taxis cruising around empty and potentially carrying out illegal trips, she added.

"However, for the convenience of commuters, we will identify more pick up points in both JB and Singapore."

This comes after Singapore and Malaysian authorities have been cracking down on illegal ride-hailing services between Singapore and Johor Bahru, with over 100 foreign-registered vehicles impounded in Singapore since July.

@asiaone In Parliament on Wednesday (Oct 15), Senior Minister of State for Transport Sun Xueling said that the Government recognises commuter demand for more convenient cross-border point-to-point services. And that they have been exploring options to enhance the existing arrangements. #crossbordertaxi #malaysia #singapore #sgnews #ridehailing ♬ original sound - AsiaOne

LTA had previously said that while there are no plans to fully liberalise cross-border transport services, it is exploring ways to enhance the existing taxi scheme.

Under the cross-border taxi scheme, a licensed fleet of up to 200 taxis from Singapore and JB can only pick up and drop off passengers at a single designated point in the other country — Larkin Sentral in JB for Singapore taxis and Ban San Street Terminal in Singapore for Malaysian taxis.

In September, five Singaporeans were caught offering illegal ride services on Telegram, and their vehicles were impounded.

LTA said that 26 motorists were caught providing illegal carpooling or motorcycle-pooling services between 2020 and 2025.

Those found guilty of providing illegal carpooling matching services may face a fine of up to $10,000, jail term for up to six months, or both.

Those convicted of providing illegal carpooling services without a vocational licence, or using an unlicensed vehicle, may be jailed for up to six months, fined up to $3,000, or both.

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chingshijie@asiaone.com