Harbourfront, Joo Koon MRT among new pick-up points for cross-border taxis

[SINGAPORE] Commuters relying on cross-border transport will soon have dedicated hubs to hail foreign taxis for their return journeys, said Singapore and Malaysian transport ministries.

Starting from May 4, regulators will activate three new designated pick-up points in each country exclusively for foreign-registered cross-border taxis. The move, announced on Thursday (Apr 30), aims to capture ride-hailing demand while tightly managing where foreign operators can source passengers.

While cross-border taxis already benefit from liberalised drop-off rules – passengers can alight anywhere in Singapore and across key Johor economic zones like Iskandar Puteri, Forest City, Kulai and Senai – the new pick-up infrastructure addresses a longstanding friction point for return trips.

For Malaysia-registered taxis operating in Singapore, the new pick-up zones are located near VivoCity, the Tampines Concourse Bus Interchange and Joo Koon. Conversely, Singapore-registered taxis in Malaysia will service pick-ups at Toppen Shopping Centre, Mid Valley Southkey Mall and Angsana Mall.

“These enhancements to the cross-border taxi scheme mark a significant step forward in strengthening the transport connectivity between Malaysia and Singapore,” said Ahmad Radhi bin Maarof, director-general of Malaysia’s Land Public Transport Agency (APAD).

Under the new framework, foreign-registered taxis are restricted to securing fares via ride-hailing applications at the newly minted hubs, while traditional street-hailing remains limited to the legacy terminals at Ban San Street and Larkin.

Operators are barred from waiting at these new pick-up points and must stage at designated holding areas until they receive a trip assignment.

To service the anticipated demand at these hubs, both nations are expanding the cross-border fleet by injecting an additional quota of 100 taxis each, raising the immediate capacity from 200 to 300 vehicles per country.

This fresh supply is ring-fenced for larger, premium models, introducing “Standard 6-seater” and “Premium 6-seater” tiers alongside standard vehicles to better serve families and business travellers.

SEE ALSO

Licensed cross-border taxis from Malaysia will require ERP 2.0 units, tamper-proof plates for Singapore entry

Singapore, Malaysia to ramp up cross-border taxi quota to 500 per country

Singapore, Malaysia to work on cross-border links with improved taxi scheme, co-located RTS clearance

Operating-cost disparity taken into account in setting fares for cross-border taxi services: MOT

More

Regulators aim to eventually scale this quota to 500 vehicles from each side.

Fares for street-hails at the primary terminals have also been recalibrated. A trip from Singapore’s Ban San Street Terminal to Larkin, or any destination within 35 kilometres, is set at S$80 for a Standard 4-seater and scales up to S$180 for a Premium 6-seater. A standard 4-seater journey originating from Larkin to Ban San Street or within 35 kilometres is priced at RM240 (S$74.40).

To ensure foreign operators do not encroach on domestic point-to-point networks, enforcement will rely heavily on strict visual and digital tracking. Licensed vehicles must prominently display a standardised “Cross-Border Taxi” livery on both sides and utilise specific licence plate prefixes: “H” for Malaysian vehicles and “SH” for Singaporean vehicles.

Digital enforcement will also require Malaysian taxis to install Singapore’s ERP 2.0 on-board unit to track border entries seamlessly. Furthermore, to protect passengers, participating vehicles cannot exceed 10 years of age from their initial date of registration.

Regulators are also maintaining strict bans on vacant carriage entries to maximise fleet efficiency. This policy mandates at least one passenger per border crossing, save for specific weekend exemption periods: Friday afternoons and evenings for Malaysia-registered taxis, and Sunday afternoons and evenings for Singapore-registered vehicles.