JOHOR BARU: About 400 local tour and travel agencies are staring at bankruptcy after their luxury multi-purpose vehicles (MVPs) were seized by Singapore.
The island republic continues to hold these vehicles even after their owners have paid hefty fines for ferrying passengers from Johor Baru to Singapore without proper permits.
The vehicles – each costing RM250,000 to RM500,000 – are still impounded in Singapore even after the owners had paid a fine of S$2,200 (RM7,260) and S$1,800 (RM5,940) for the driver.
On the Malaysian side, the authorities still allow Singaporean private hire vehicles that provide the same service to enter the country, the tour agencies said.
Some of the owners have even gone to Singaporean courts to get their assets back but to no avail.
Tour operator Cheries Chia, 36, said two of her vehicles were seized at the end of last year and were never returned despite settling heavy compounds.
“After 11 months in court, the judge told us the car is officially seized with no further appeal. No documents were issued, leaving us unable to audit our accounts properly,” she said.
The vehicle was seized with passengers on board, forcing her agency to compensate the customers while still being tied to an eight-year hire purchase loan.
Another tour company owner, Muhammad Siddiq Kunyu, 34, said three of his MPVs were seized in Singapore earlier this year.
“Even with a Singapore lawyer on the case, there has been no updates on how to get our vehicles back.
“The case has been ongoing for more than six months but has been postponed without information, even though we are ready to cooperate,” he said.
Cheries and Muhammad were among more than 30 representatives from local travel agencies who have urged the Malaysian Transport Ministry to help them resolve the matter.
Another agency owner, Ahmad Khaizurin Shario, 44, said 119 vehicles were seized in Singapore.
“Meanwhile, Singapore’s private-hire vehicles continue to have their VEP issued by Malaysian authorities. This is unfair to travel agencies here. We urge the government to take action and help agencies reclaim our vehicles,” he said.
Representing the group, travel agency owner Khairul Anuar Mohtar, 37, said the restriction against certain Malaysian vehicles ferrying passengers from Johor Baru to Singapore started in 2023.
Prior to that, these tour operators were permitted to ferry passengers between both countries, he added.
The new restrictions apply to vehicles registered under rental, travel, holiday and transport categories, causing mounting losses to these companies and fuelled the growth of illegal cross-border taxis, said Khairul Anuar.
Buses with seating capacities of between seven and 45 do not fall under these restrictions.
“Hire and drive tourism vehicles have served as crucial transportation between the two countries for the past 10 years.
“Corporate leaders and overseas visitors rely on our services to travel between Johor Baru and Singapore, especially since Changi Airport is an important transit point for both locals and foreigners doing business here.
“You cannot expect them to take buses for point-to-point travel, especially for elderly people, pregnant women and people with disabilities,” he said at a press conference recently.
Khairul noted that 476 travel agencies in Johor are registered with the Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry (Motac), with about 3,000 MPVs operating these cross-border services.
“The demand is real. There are at least 1,000 orders daily for trips both ways. For my own agency, we reject more than 20 bookings daily now that we have no permit to enter,” he added.
He stressed that the MPVs already comply with Singapore’s safety and regulatory standards, including six-monthly Puspakom inspections, compulsory passenger insurance, Public Service Vehicle (PSV) vocational licences for drivers and official Motac permits.
“Despite meeting all requirements, our applications are rejected. The result is that illegal taxis are filling the gap, which threatens passenger safety and damages Johor’s tourism image,” he said.
