2 S’pore-registered vehicles reportedly caught offering illegal ride-hailing services at Legoland in JB

Drivers of S’pore-registered vehicles detained for allegedly offering illegal ride-hailing services at Legoland

In an apparent role reversal, two Singapore-registered vehicles were reportedly caught offering illegal ride-hailing services at Legoland in Johor Bahru.

Images of the operation were shared in a now-deleted post in a Facebook group for border crossers, reported Malaysia’s China Press. Its caption read:

You catch me, I catch you, we hurt each other and see who will hurt the most: Singapore dollar or Malaysian ringgit car price.

Johor authorities surround S’pore-registered vehicles outside Legoland

The photos showed two black multi-purpose vehicles (MPVs) surrounded by vehicles from Johor’s Road Transport Department (Jabatan Pengangkutan Jalan) (JPJ) outside Legoland.

At least one of the MPVs was shown to have a Singapore licence plate.

A number of JPJ officers were also at the scene, apparently conducting investigations.

Enforcement against illegal ride-hailing conducted outside Legoland

Sources told China Press that JPJ enforcement officers conducted checks on Singapore-registered vehicles suspected of soliciting and ferrying passengers at about 12 noon last Saturday (9 Aug) outside the theme park in Iskandar Puteri.

The source, named only as Mr Chen (transliterated from Mandarin), quoted witnesses as saying that two Singapore-registered vehicles were about to transport passengers back to Singapore when they were stopped and detained by the officers.

Their drivers were then detained.

Crackdown based on public complaints: Source

Another source revealed that the JPJ had been acting on complaints from the public.

He said that illegal ride-hailing services had drawn the attention of drivers and the public on both sides of the border.

Some netizens who commented on the Facebook post approved of the crackdown, while others believed that tourists and ordinary citizens of both countries would be on the losing end.

Vehicles with LTA sticker seen outside Legoland

Following the operation on Saturday, China Press visited Legoland on Sunday (10 Aug) and noted that no large group of Singapore-registered vehicles were waiting for passengers.

However, they did spot a few vehicles with private-hire stickers issued by Singapore’s Land Transport Authority (LTA).

A Legoland hotel staff member said that he saw JPJ officers briefly in the morning.

A less-publicised crackdown on illegal ride-hailing in M’sia

LTA has been clamping down on illegal cross-border ride-hailing services in Singapore for years.

This has resulted in a number of foreign‑registered vehicles being seized at hotspots such as Changi Airport, Gardens By The Bay and Chinatown in recent months.

However, the recent operation at Legoland might be a less-publicised case of the shoe being on the other foot.

JPJ has yet to release a statement on the reported enforcement operation, according to China Press.

Also read: LTA catches 10 drivers offering illegal ride-hailing services at Changi Airport following tip-off

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Featured image adapted from 柔新关卡Both Checkpoint 分享站 on Facebook via China Press.