A backbencher has called on the government to hold talks with Singapore on lifting the ban on e-hailing rides to the island state from Johor Bahru.
Jimmy Puah (PH-Tebrau) said the decision to ban such rides was unfortunate and hurt frequent commuters, adding that as Johoreans, many like him preferred to fly out from Changi Airport when travelling overseas.
Puah said a typical ride from Johor Bahru to Changi would take about an hour, provided the Causeway was clear.
Given the gravity of the situation, he said, the transport and foreign ministers must urgently meet with their Singapore counterparts to negotiate and allow commuters to take e-hailing rides into the republic.
Puah said recent incidents where Malaysians were stopped by Singapore authorities for dropping off passengers at Changi Airport had caused confusion and hardship.
He said some drivers also had their vehicles seized and were now being investigated by the authorities there.
“Johor and Singapore have long enjoyed close, strategic ties, yet issues like this hinder the progress that the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone is meant to bring.
“If its goal is to bring us closer, we must remove such barriers,” he told the Dewan Rakyat when debating the 13th Malaysia Plan.
Puah also proposed that certain conditions be set to allow these e-hailing rides to enter Singapore. Among them were restricting drop-offs to airports and ferry terminals and limiting them to Malaysians or foreign residents in Malaysia.
On Aug 3, Singapore’s Land Transport Authority (LTA) said there were no plans to fully allow cross-border e-hailing.
This was despite the idea being raised during an Aug 1 meeting between Singapore’s acting transport minister Jeffrey Siow and Johor menteri besar Onn Hafiz Ghazi.
LTA said it wanted to protect the livelihoods of existing drivers and curb unauthorised services.
For now, cross-border taxi trips remain under the Cross-Border Taxi Scheme, which limits services to 200 licensed cabs from each side, operating from designated pick-up points in each country.
Puah said smoother cross-border travel was vital for both people and trade.
He noted that the JB-Singapore RTS is due to open at the end of 2026, carrying tens of thousands of passengers per hour and easing Causeway congestion.
He suggested building two new road links from the RTS station – one towards Jalan Skudai to move passengers north and west, and another towards Jalan Tebrau to channel traffic eastwards out of Johor Bahru.
These routes would help prevent thousands of e-hailing cars and other vehicles from clogging city streets once the RTS begins operations.
