Uber service in Malaysia not deemed “illegal,” but will need to fully comply with local transportation laws

uber

The controversy surrounding Uber in Malaysia continues – earlier, it was reported that the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) was approaching the topic carefully and was wary about taking action against the transport service provider, given its growing popularity with the Malaysian public.

Now, things are heating up. News reports from earlier today gave the indication that authorities had deemed the service ‘illegal’, which isn’t really the case. What SPAD is actually saying is that the mobile app-based vehicle for hire service must fully comply with all transportation laws in the country, which it apparently does not at present.

For starters, the commission says that the service utilises private vehicles, which are not allowed to carry fare-paying passengers. Doing so is an offence under the Land Public Transport Act 2010. The regulations also state that vehicles registered under ‘hire-and-drive’ conditions under SPAD cannot be used for taxi or limousine services.

According to SPAD chairman Tan Sri Syed Hamid Albar, the commission’s findings had determined that Uber is utilising private vehicles as well as those registered for ‘hire-and-drive’ services in addition to vehicles from proper limousine companies.

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“Under the current regulatory scheme, among the vehicles used by Uber, only licensed limousines are eligible to offer chauffeur-driven services,” he said. Plying the trade with private and ‘hire-and drive’ cars is the concern. “This illegal service provided could be colloquially referred to as kereta sapu,” as Syed Hamid put it.

Additional issues concern the fact that vehicles utilised by the service are not covered under commercial vehicle insurance. They might not also be put through Puspakom’s semi-annual checks, he added.

On top of all this, SPAD also found that some Uber drivers do not possess a Public Service Vehicle (PSV) driving licence, an offence under the Road Transport Act 1987.

Syed Hamid however said that the commission is taking a more pragmatic approach and is open to allowing this service, as long as the services are provided by appropriately licensed vehicles and drivers.

uber x car

He added that there should be no shortage of options to bring compliance about. “Since there are 839 licensed limousines nationwide which are eligible to offer this service, the supply of vehicles and drivers should therefore not be an issue for Uber,” he said.

Syed Hamid stated that as the regulator in charge of Malaysia’s land public transport, SPAD would not hesitate to take enforcement action on service providers who do not comply with the law.

Earlier, Gabungan Persatuan dan Syarikat-Syarikat Teksi Semenanjung Malaysia (GABUNGAN) called on SPAD to act against Uber. Apart from taking away their customers, taxi operators claim that the law does not bind the service, and if an accident happens, passengers are at risk.

Malaysia is of course not the first country in which the service – which was launched in KL in October last year and which recently introduced its budget UberX service – has faced such vitriol.

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Uber’s services – currently covering 57 cities in 22 countries – pose a definite challenge to many public transport regulators around the world, so much so that some cities such as Miami, Berlin and Seoul have banned it.

The claim by SPAD that Uber utilises private cars, which have no operating licence and as such contravenes existing public transport laws, might have a ring of truth to it. Many of the team here at paultan.org have utilised Uber in their daily travels, and we’ve talked to some of the service’s drivers who used to work in the Uber system as part of limo companies but who are now working in the Uber system on their own. We didn’t go into detail with them on what this meant, and whether the vehicles they were driving were private cars.

So, loopholes exist, and they should be plugged to bring compliance about, but how will it pan out, and how will Uber respond in terms of compliance to the law? The service only supplies the technology and the system to connect customers to transport providers – the cars are all provided by third-party partners.

More importantly, it remains to be seen how the authorities will go about things, and whether they will curtail its growth. Shutting it out, if it comes to that, would be a travesty – the point is, something like Uber is a godsend to many public transport users in the Klang Valley, given the efficiency of regular taxi operations.

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It’s not like we have a truly efficient taxi service, despite having 60,000-plus taxis in the Peninsular – as many will undoubtedly agree, it’s a challenge to get a cab most times, whether on foot or by phone. On one occasion, this writer stood outside his taman for 43 mins attempting to flag a cab down, simply because calling in for one got the usual “No teksi” reply. Two did stop, but didn’t want to go the intended route.

So yes, the livelihood of taxi drivers is important, of course, and something like Uber naturally challenges it, but the idea is that you need to compete, not just discredit it and whinge that it’s taking away your income. How to go about it, well, how about improving the attitude and approach towards users – the very people you depend on for your livelihood – for a start? We won’t even begin to go into the condition of some of the rides.

Until taxi operators can show users that their service is efficient and accessible, without us having to listen to those tired, familiar “tak mau pergi” and “no teksi” lines or asked to pay a flat rate because there is no other option, something like Uber will always be the better choice. To ban or eliminate it would be taking a few significant steps back in public transport – hopefully, it won’t come to that.

As Syed Hamid put it during the briefing with the press, “SPAD would also like to take this opportunity to urge the taxi industry to use these current developments as an opportunity to enhance the level of service provided and improve the reputation of the domestic taxi industry, in order to further gain public confidence.” Time then for everyone to wake up – getting Uber to play by the rules is just one part of it.

What are your thoughts on the Uber topic? Share your views with us in the comments section.

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Anthony Lim

Anthony Lim believes that nothing is better than a good smoke and a car with character, with good handling aspects being top of the prize heap. Having spent more than a decade and a half with an English tabloid daily never being able to grasp the meaning of brevity or being succinct, he wags his tail furiously at the idea of waffling - in greater detail - about cars and all their intrinsic peculiarities here.

 

Comments

  • Semi-Value (Member) on Aug 28, 2014 at 7:34 pm

    taxi should be banned…so bloody unsafe and dangerous…no diff than asking some random gangster to drive u…i feel safer asking the ahlong and rudely asking him to fetch me

    Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 172 Thumb down 10
    • Completely agree with you. Number of taxis in KL should be reduced. Throw all the Old proton sagas away as they are a hazard for road users. Just keep the new EXORAs and SAGA blm. If you’re a KL driver like me, you would know. All simply like to park, road hog and sudden turn.

      Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 153 Thumb down 5
      • Sex Maniac Teksi Drivers on Aug 29, 2014 at 10:38 am

        Now everybody use UBER very simple. All our teksi drivers are so dirty. All the time digging their nore.

        So many complaints that teksi drivers always digging their nose, teeth of pulling their janggut with 2 ten sen coin. Most ladies and even men so difficult or geli to give money to the teksi driver because sure got gold (bugger) in his fingers.

        In Malaysia, ladies always ask teksi drivers to keep the change because they really geli want to touch the change from teksi drivers.

        Another matter also is that all teksi drivers in Malaysia are sex maniacs. Ask any woman, they will tell you, teksi driver always talk dirty or sex to them. Most women feel uncomfortable and scared because teksi drivers talk filth.

        Malaysian teksi drivers should all be prosecuted. This is an Islamic country but they get commission by pimps to bring clients to them. Most single men, either Malaysians or tourist enter the teksi, straight away teksi driver ask whther they want prostitute or spa. Then when the passenger says yes, the teksi driver gets a commission from the brothel, rumah tumpangan or pimp. this has been going on for years and yet, the teksi drivers try to play innocent. They profit from dosa and make Malaysia the sex capital of Asia by encouraging, promoting and aiding and abetting such crime.

        I hope our transport ministry see into this. Remember, our taxi drivers are promoting red light practises as well as sins of the flesh in Malaysia. Mana JAIS? JAIS got time to run around the taman bunga catching young school boys and girls kissing on the cheeks.

        Ask any guy, they will tell you. Our teksi drivers will entice them to visit prostitutes. They will say, “Melay, China, India, Kazakhstan, Ubekistan, Thai semua ada”

        At least Uber guys don’t talk sex nor promote Malaysia as the sex capital of Asia.

        But Ministers don’t care. Bung Mokhtar can ridicule women and talk about their periods and no action done unto him. So, why would anyone bother how women are harrassed sexually by our teksi drivers?

        JAIS knows about this but close an eye. Bulan Puasa also, JAIS knows our Muslim taxi drivers are carrying prostitutes and encouraging sins of the flesh but don’t do anything.

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 40 Thumb down 11
        • longkai on Aug 29, 2014 at 1:14 pm

          Nazri….?? huhuhu

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 2
        • elvin ee on Sep 14, 2014 at 2:33 am

          if i want travel from setapak to klia2, what is the procedure?
          How long it take to pick me up?
          Can we reserve one day before we depart?

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
      • Botak Hamid on Aug 29, 2014 at 11:24 am

        Biggest culprit here is the body that is in charge of teksi permit. Now got no kickback. No income coming in. Go dig deeper and find who is in charge of teksi permits. You will see, he is like the AP King. He can do magic with the government. He tell Putrajaya to eat shit also, Putrajaya will eat shit.

        You know this guy makes hundreds of million RM from kickbacks and under the table money.

        Might be the same guy who operates the KLIa teksi service, a service that all foreigners and tourist call as poor and disgustingly dirty. Yet KLIA teksi goes on for years. Why? Because Menteri punya relative own it!

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 20 Thumb down 2
    • sudonano (Member) on Aug 28, 2014 at 9:20 pm

      I would not go all out and ban taxis altogether, as I have met some genuinely nice taxi drivers who regularly help me out when I am in need of getting from point A to B.

      Having said that, I think this whole thing seems a bit funny. Uber’s been here for the last 10 months. You are now telling me that not a single person in SPAD reads the news about the UberBlack launch. As for UberX too, when they launched and were in the news, you are telling me SPAD never realised it.

      Now, fast forward, GABUNGAN comes and says Uber is killing their collections. And suddenly championing “passenger safety” when they still have not solved the big issues of reckless taxis and taxis that refuse to go to some places. Then SPAD swings in and says Uber is illegal, internet backlash kicks in, and now it is not “illegal”.

      Very fishy, is it that GABUNGAN cannot accept constructive criticism that they need to buck up on overall taxi service and fight healthily with Uber? Mind you, Uber is at a disadvantage now as it only accepts cards and needs a smartphone app with data connections, which is something not everyone has.

      Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 94 Thumb down 2
      • Hondaman on Aug 28, 2014 at 10:46 pm

        SPAD never says uber is illegal, it is the media which put the word illegal. A few months ago, a local media was harping about illegal taxi or teksi haram. Where got illegal taxi when they were given permit, what we have are private cars used to transport people or in malay ” kereta sapu”

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 12 Thumb down 0
      • Dirty Teksi Drivers on Aug 29, 2014 at 11:19 am

        I got long telescope from my condo. I have even seen taxi drivers at the bottom of my condo masturbate in the car whilst waiting for passengers. This the kind of cab drivers we have!

        Then from Empire in Subang they charge RM80 to go to Mid Valley Mega Mall. What is SPAD doing?

        I fully support Uber as the are decent.

        I was shocked when my Mat Salleh friend kena RM80 from Empire Subang to Mid Valley Mega Mall.

        Other countries, the cab guy will be kind enough to tell that the KTM train goes straight to Mid Valley Mega Mall for RM1.50

        But our cab driver, hantam the white man for RM80

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 32 Thumb down 2
    • Burong on Aug 29, 2014 at 9:18 am

      Common Semi Value, taxi driver is trying to make end meets. They too mostly are the victim of Malaysia Taxi association where passes were not provided to them. I think Taxi drivers now have an option to go over Uber for retrain, have a better life in transportation business.

      I strongly believe non government link Taxi business can make the industry more controlled, just like Air Asia. With MAS, every one is hungry and need more to feed their family, so lots of hanky panky stuff to suck more from passengers.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 9 Thumb down 3
      • To be neutral, yes not all taxi drivers are bad. However, 1 bad taxi = very bad image for taxis. They need to start weeding out these bastards.

        GABUNGAN, ya hear that? WEED OUT THE BAD TAXI!

        Hey yes, I admit it, I hate taxis on road. But let’s not flip the entire boat of taxis.

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 16 Thumb down 0
    • Mee Choo on Aug 30, 2014 at 3:04 am

      For perempuan yang pakai track suit mesti naik uber sebab selamat as per mamat Paul Tan.

      Habis tu teksi makan apa? Jangan main main

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 2
  • Gojeng on Aug 28, 2014 at 8:02 pm

    After this, politics will come into play. GABUNGAN will pressure SPAD and say “we will give any support to the gomen again”. Which in reality they are not, see Program Tayar 1 Malaysia for example.

    Then SPAD will feel divided whether to submit to the GABUNGAN’s pressure or to listen to Rakyat who love UBER’s services, which again, can be supportive or critical to gomen.

    All the best TS Hamid!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 31 Thumb down 1
    • GABUNGAN = PEKEMA on Aug 29, 2014 at 11:30 am

      Gabungan are like the AP PEKEMA pariahs. Lazy like hell and they live of the 30 million Malaysians. We are supporting these lazy idiots who don’t want to work harder and want everything to fall onto their laps.

      Sack all the teksi drivers. There are so many people who want to become teksi drivers.

      This is worse than terrorism. Holding the government with a gun on its head and blackmailing the government.

      Spoilt lazy brats. Instead of sleeping in the coffee shop, drive around and work harder looking for customers. Half the time they double park at coffee shops, block traffic and sleep there for hours.

      No wonder your income cannot double. Work full 9 to 5 then you will make good money. If 4 hours you sleep in the coffee shop or at the surau, how you want to make money?

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 10 Thumb down 2
  • seancorr on Aug 28, 2014 at 8:10 pm

    Not only are our taxis old and dirty, their drivers are a bunch of people do bluntly disregard the law thinking they are above the police too. I’m sure you’ve seen how rude they are to us.

    How many times I have to jam brake to avoid them coming into my lane and watching them cutting queues are another issue.

    Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 53 Thumb down 3
    • So true. Was stuck in traffic on jln p ramlee and I wanted to turn into klcc’s parking enterance. The second I signaled to turn into the carpark. One of those taxi exora sped up to block the gap I was turning into. Frustrated that I now have wait a couple more needless minutes for traffic to move forward, I honked the taxi blocking the enterance to the carpark, the taxi driver gets out of the cab started cursing and being all gangster like. Luckily the guy being an idiot forgot to pull his handbreak and the gap created left me enough space to zoom out of confronting the low life.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 40 Thumb down 2
    • Fabes on Aug 28, 2014 at 11:22 pm

      Mostly true but still an unfair generalisation. I’ve met a number a genuinely nice taxi drivers with decent cars!

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 15 Thumb down 0
  • Damon on Aug 28, 2014 at 8:25 pm

    Majority of taxi drivers offer cut throat fares when opportunity arises. Discipline & work ethics is relatively low. And now they want to complain when competition emerges. Pathetic!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 45 Thumb down 4
  • Hohoho on Aug 28, 2014 at 8:31 pm

    Why don’ t SPAD just approve license for Uber and MyTeksi cabs only? Ban the rest of the cabs with uncouth drivers and dirty taxi.

    uber and MyTeksi should be the only approved ones. These are e taxis which will not give me the no taxi, tak mahu pergi and fixed fee nonsense.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 33 Thumb down 6
  • transformer on Aug 28, 2014 at 8:32 pm

    SPAD will find ways & reason to ban UBER as GABUNGAN RICE BOWL AT STAKES! Without these TAXI, theres no need for SPAD to exist!

    BUT from consumer & rakyat perspective, WE ALL WANT UBER!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 32 Thumb down 8
  • Agreed that most of the taxi drivers act nothing different from gangster. Not everyone, there are honest and earnest taxi driver. But when u see bunch of them gang up to eliminate competitor to fetch customer from certain place, that really piss me off.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 35 Thumb down 2
    • Yes. They gang up and monopolize major tourist spots and shopping centres. You see a row of them parked by the roadside, just waiting to slaughter people. If other more honest drivers come, they shoo them away.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 29 Thumb down 1
  • ahmad on Aug 28, 2014 at 9:02 pm

    As a son of licensed taxi driver, i admit that government already helped the taxi driver a lot.
    Macam2 bantuan diberikan. My family and I are so thankful to the government for the helps. We know that some of taxi drivers are a little bit rude and have negative manners, but we can assure that majority are not. Pepatah Melayu ada mengatakan, kerana nila setitik, rosak susu sebelanga.

    Personally, I like the Uber services, as long as it is safe and comply the rules, nothing wrong with the services. UBER should know the rules and discussed with SPAD first, I’m sure, if they did.that, no.problem anymore

    Well-loved. Like or Dislike: Thumb up 60 Thumb down 1
    • pondan on Aug 29, 2014 at 7:58 am

      Yi bro.

      U r right. I have met many honest taxi drivers in klang Valley but at times a few dishonest one. I know about the hardship of a taxi drivers and thelousy cost to operate one. Not to mention, to get a upgraded or a refresh cab.

      Personally, i usually tip the driver with at least RM10 for a short ride cuz it’s not easy to drive long hours in a harsh traffic especially in KL

      But the connected ppl or crony should stop leeching other people hard work. This r the cancerous crap that need to be get rite of.

      UBER is just like bitcoin, managed to operate out of this cronies network and now this bunch of idiots r crying and yelling for assistance.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 9 Thumb down 2
  • What about MyTeksi GrabCar’s then…arent they ‘privately-owned’ too, dont you think they will have to be needed to shut down too? See, UBER Cars are all mostly Chartered from different car rental and hire companies, so even if UBER were to close, it doesnt bring such vast effect to the drivers, but if MyTeksi’s GrabCar driver were to close…what will hapen to all Nissan Teana’s and what will happen to all the drivers? …We will always wonder!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 5 Thumb down 3
    • Hondaman on Aug 28, 2014 at 10:50 pm

      Myteksi grab a car use mayflower travel & tours cars which have permit from the authority. Please read more or google about the service.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 9 Thumb down 1
      • Gilap car on Aug 29, 2014 at 6:20 am

        Grab car standard is far lower than uber. Got some uncle driver who can’t speak English, don’t know the roads and kept running red lights

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 2
      • Uber Driver on Jun 02, 2015 at 12:23 am

        Nope. Now they are also have private car registered for Grab A Car. Pls seek more reality on this…hahaha. Heard some fren already register for it with their own car.

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Satumii on Aug 28, 2014 at 9:19 pm

    To improve our Taxi service – first we need to sack Syed Bin Crony and install a professional. Look across our Northern Neighbour – Bangkok, Thailand. Taxi are plentiful, new, clean and the Driver are friendly and honest

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 37 Thumb down 5
    • pxp154 on Aug 29, 2014 at 8:02 am

      True like my recent trip to HCM, Vietnam,
      Vinasun Taxi Co. are exemplary. The meter is properly boxed&locked-accurate fares, taxi Standard&Clean(not modified or dated) & Vinasun officers nearby at tourist areas to enforce & assist us to the next taxi in line get us to our destinations :)

      so near yet so far for Malaysia Vision 2020 :(

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 11 Thumb down 0
  • Malaysian-Taxi-hater on Aug 28, 2014 at 9:19 pm

    Malaysian taxi is national shame. Please wash your taxi in and out and learn how to drive properly on the road before you take passenger, especially foreign passengers!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 25 Thumb down 2
  • Noriza on Aug 28, 2014 at 9:54 pm

    For so long commuters problem with taxis services in Malaysia seem endless..now with UBER we the commuters feels liberated, no longer at the mercy of the majority of uncouth taxi drivers..,,instead of whinning and crying for the authorities to take action against UBER..they president of the gabungan should have a pow wow session with the members how to better improve their services

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 7 Thumb down 1
  • Strider on Aug 28, 2014 at 10:02 pm

    Only in Malaysia you get taxi drivers who deny your request to go to a certain location because either they are “not my area”, “too far”, “shift ending soon” or simply because they do not want to by racial profiling, I swear this happens everyday especially unfortunate in areas with African ethnicities living around as students usually. Booking the taxis make no difference either, you either get an apathetic dispatcher on the opposite end taking their time and putting you on hold forever or they immediately dismiss you and say none of their drivers are available or in your area (pretty much the reason why people call for one in the first place).

    There was once where I was heading out for a job interview and booked a taxi the day before to make sure I would be able to make it on time. The next morning, the dispatcher calls and tells me no driver is available, probably had not got around to hiring a cab for me until morning itself. I ended up waiting an hour trying to hitchhike from my neighbors to no avail, after which the dispatcher calls again telling me they’ve arranged a ride and I will need to pay the additional 20RM for this booking (which they have missed by the way). I enter a lengthy conversation explaining that I have hired a cab in advance as an order, not a inquiry whether they want to send me one or not, to which the operator can merely repeat the same offer to me again and again, despite being already late.

    The standards of our local taxis are awful and their drivers are usually no better. Hundreds of beat up old Proton Sagas litter the streets all over town. I have witnessed a group of taxi drivers harass a student for not agreeing to pay their fixed price for a short ride from SS15 to the nearest KTM station (35RM vs the usual 8) over the excuse of bad traffic. One attempted to scam me triple the rate for a short ride as well, when I remarked that I am not a tourist, he dropped his attempts, saying that he offered me the inflated fee because there are a group of Chinese nationals in the area that he has already charged such a price, assuming I was one. And don’t get me started on the hundreds of taxis that do not use a meter or conceal them.

    A service like UBER is a godsend to the Malaysian public, they operate fairly, take you from A to B, no questions asked. The fact that they are not “legal” to operate as a transport service is beyond the point that they provide a service like no other around town. I hope once they acquired the required permits that all of this will be dropped, since the cab drivers now have nothing else to throw against them other than false accusations of how their drivers are “dangerous people”.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 37 Thumb down 3
  • I feel that new law need to be implement for legalize the Uber service as those driver are just part time taxi driver. It is nonsense to ask them have a business license while they maybe just drive for few day per month. Maybe just took a test and service must be on time will make them a legal taxi driver. For tax problem, i have no idea

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 1
  • I want a driver. Not a taxi. Simple. So you can tell people that “My driver drop me off” instead of ” I took the taxi”. Save cost with much more style. Gonna try Uber one day.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 7 Thumb down 4
  • chow loh on Aug 28, 2014 at 10:43 pm

    Totally in agreement with Satumii !. How about allowing tuts-tuts ( which Paris, France has just done )also in our towns and cities. Wherever ( at hotels, bus or train-stations ) I need transport, there will be some kind waiting or available in no time unlike the situation here. This will reduce the number of private cars on the road and help relieve the financial burdens of many working families. Of course this goes against a lot of vested interests, eg Proton and other car manufacturers/related industries and the loss of duties to pay for the bloated bureaucrats. An efficient and cheap transport system will do more good for the country than all the other “energy savings ” initiatives. Many of these are more rhetorics (earth-hour,etc) or are more to benefit some groups.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 3
  • Ong Chee Boon on Aug 28, 2014 at 10:54 pm

    Typical Malaysian authorities and our taxi operators. Seek protection like a baby, and discourage healthy competition.

    If taxi operators have no problem in customer service, do you think UBER will be a challenge?

    If taxis are in tip top condition, do you think we want to choose UBER?

    If taxi drives can at least drive safely and responsibly, do you think we need to turn to UBER?

    If all taxi uses a standard meter which does not overcharge its customers for a mere short distance, you think UBER can rise?

    Petty politics.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 20 Thumb down 2
  • Bacapik on Aug 28, 2014 at 11:04 pm

    1. Getting a taxi – We have been using taxi once in a while and to get a taxi to get to a destination is such a pain in the ass. Some refuse to use meters, some wouldn’t want to go to the said destination and even with MyTeksi app, sometimes, it’s difficult to get a taxi.

    2. On safety – “Earlier, Gabungan Persatuan dan Syarikat-Syarikat Teksi Semenanjung Malaysia (GABUNGAN) called on SPAD to act against Uber. Apart from taking away their customers, taxi operators claim that the law does not bind the service, and if an accident happens, passengers are at risk.”
    – Since when did they care about passengers’ / public safety? Taxi drivers drive like mad, tailgating, turns and stops abruptly, and driving too slow to find customers. And what about KLIA taxi which usually speeds like crazy from our houses to KLIA? And now we are talking about safety?

    3. Cleanliness and comfort – Most of the taxi are old proton cars and cheap new NGV saga. It’s not that we don’t like saga or proton or the drivers. But most of the time, it’s old and beaten up cars with all kinds of smells and to make it worse, the driver smokes in the cars with all the windows down and air-condition switched off while in traffic jam. We don’t blame taxi drivers who sincerely trying to make ends meet with the best that they have, but what about the rest of the drivers who couldn’t care less? Don’t we as customers and passengers deserved to have a clean and comfortable ride as in what Uber offering to the public?

    4. Technology and going towards 2020 – We are now living in an era of smartphone with all kinds of previously-unthinkable-helpful and great apps. Why, for all these times, can’t SPAD, authorities or the government came up with an idea like this? We have great talented Malayasians with all kind of positive ideas. We have been living with bad taxi drivers reputation for too long. It’s just too bad that when good things like Uber came right in front of our door, we shut the door and refuse to get along with it and get the positive benefits that came with it. We really should learn from this event.

    5. We are just tired and frustrated trying to use public transport and taxi. Most people end up with a decent and affordable motorbike to travel in Klang Valley. Even with that, it’s a nightmare to ride a bike in Klang valley with crazy and careless taxi drivers who love to stop by the roadside abruptly.

    It’s just unfortunate that we are now seeing taxi drivers as bad and irresponsible drivers carrying people around. Because of the time they spent on the road, they should be seen as professional and experienced drivers who can serve customers efficiently and with utmost safety in mind. But looking at the way how most of them drive around, with or without Uber in Malaysia, I doubt people with use taxi unless the industry buck up and improve the service.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 21 Thumb down 1
  • ah chai on Aug 28, 2014 at 11:40 pm

    Just one thing, Uber doesn’t have to pay under table license money to politicians (ESP the one who shouted the loudest ) while all other legal taxis are paying their hard earned money on daily basis.

    Legal taxis have to take a few clients everyday just to pay the duit kopi, after that only they start earning to put food on table for the family.

    Take away those duit kopi and Let them compete freely. I’m sure many decent drivers would take up the job and offer good quality service.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 19 Thumb down 3
  • Denise on Aug 28, 2014 at 11:59 pm

    Uber is a good service and it’s something that utilises great technology to provide a great service at often reasonable costs. There’s not much point in trying to stop it – better tech and better service will eventually win anyway.

    But…

    I feel that people are blindly supporting Uber without knowing about Uber’s “surge pricing” business model.

    “Surge pricing” is a new and softer phrase to what we used to call “price gouging”. This is a method of pricing where Uber tracks the number of available cars vs. the number of incoming requests (or number of predicted incoming requests) and automatically raises or lowers the price.

    Uber’s argument for this is valid – ie. it’s basic supply and demand and the increased prices will encourage more drivers to become active drivers instead of checking out.

    But on the flip side, there doesn’t appear to be an upper limit to how high the fares can go and the calculation as well as the driver-to-orders ratio is not published transparently. So you will never know whether you’re being ripped off or whether it’s a genuine calculation.

    I think what would be more productive is for people to demand from Uber and SPAD that certain regulations are established to monitor and control “surge pricing” and perhaps even expand this monitoring and control mechanism to existing taxi and limo companies.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 10 Thumb down 5
    • 4G63T DSM on Aug 29, 2014 at 11:49 am

      Asking SPAD to monitor and control is akin to talking to a brick wall.

      They can’t even control their current taxi licencees from “price Gouging” by not using the meter and refusing a fare.

      Which is magnitudes more grave than any “surge pricing” you claim.

      In my 3 years working in KL, I have only had 3(!!!) satisfactory taxi experiences…. before UBER, I would just even prefer to drive to the airport and park there for a few nights than take a cab.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 4 Thumb down 0
  • Back seat on Aug 29, 2014 at 2:02 am

    How ironic. KL taxi drivers suddenly need friends to support them against new competition. And they find they have few friends among the public. The public had enough after years of cheating, rudeness, dirty old cars, accidents and poor service. Sorry KL taxi drivers, if you wanted to be popular you should have cleaned up your business earlier.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 9 Thumb down 0
  • boleh ka tak boleh on Aug 29, 2014 at 5:10 am

    Why not SPAD change the rules or implement new over existing ones? Like putting a reasonable charge on permit for the cars used. Drivers should register with SPAD but dont have to take the license. Kereta sapu ada permit. :p

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • Battu on Aug 29, 2014 at 9:05 am

      the PSV license must be mandatory la brother, lots of taxi driver has already invested to get the license.
      Rules must exist, if not u and i can go grab few passengers on the way back home and charge them without no legal issue.
      The matter is simple actually, and SPAD already give UBER the point: u must only use registered cars, and only qualified driver with valid license can operate, and walla! UBER is no more breaking any law.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 7 Thumb down 4
      • Are you farkin serious? “invest to get the license”?? = another way of saying “make my pocket fat! then I let you run”

        Kroni rent seeking mentality.

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 5
        • Battu on Aug 29, 2014 at 12:20 pm

          u moron or what. google on how to get psv license. its not cheap u know. do u even know what PSV license is? simply jump into conclusion like idiot.
          mindless kiasu mentality.

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 2
  • kerol on Aug 29, 2014 at 8:16 am

    I think it’s been a while since I last take a ride in a taxi. I have to say Uber has done a great job, nice ride, well mannered driver and exceptional system, I feel totally safe as we can send the driver’s, car details and destination to our friends, and I don’t mind paying extra. how normal cab gonna beat that?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 0
  • Maserati(Official) on Aug 29, 2014 at 9:41 am

    there’s many politicians sitting on companies which gives out the taxi permit, easy money for them, botak hamid wont make life harder for his konco and kawans…

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 1
  • Billt42 on Aug 29, 2014 at 10:12 pm

    No mention of MyTeksi or Easy Taxi which does address many of the problems very well. While appealong both to customers and the honest taxi drivers out there (who do exist)

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 1
  • sarah on Aug 30, 2014 at 3:21 am

    My friend and I once stayed at Swiss Garden Hotel. From KL Sentral we took the budget taxi for RM13 to the hotel. Later in the evening we wanted to go to KL Sentral back to get the lrt to go to klcc. A green taxi was waiting at the bus stop just in front of the hotel, and offered to take us to KL Sentral for RM15 (not using the meter of course). While hesitating to accept the offer, a B112 rapid bus approaching and we saw that it was going to KL Sentral. We said sorry to the taxi driver and boarded the bus for RM1 only. Since then, whenever I went to KL and stayed there, I just took Rapid bus back and forth to KL Sentral. Hahaha

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 0
  • Anasalleh on Aug 30, 2014 at 7:24 am

    I have bad experience when try to request for taxi service around 6 or 8 to bring me to airport/taxi terminal. Nobody want to take me. One time, I was late and decided to leave my car at the airport parking since no taxi wanted to take me. Luckily I saw one cab which the driver is about to finish his shift. He agreed to send me to airport, a nice fella but the fare is fixed. Like it or not, I have to pay. But I am so grateful coz I am worried to leave my car 3 days at the airport. If the goverment want to take action against UBER, goverment should see how to overcome this problem that the public is facing. So many taxis on the road but not available during certain time, not using the meter, charge rate. Like it or not, we have to take it.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 1
  • elvin ee on Sep 14, 2014 at 2:31 am

    if i want travel from setapak to klia2, what is the procedure?
    How long it take to pick me up?
    Can we reserve one day before we depart?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Jordan on Sep 22, 2014 at 5:41 pm

    before they take action , i would like to ask Traffic department and JPJ to make new law to against those idiot taxi driver , they don’t bother to follow the law on road , if got anyone wan stop the taxi , the taxi driver don’t bother the car from behind and just stop in middle of road .i had experienced this kind of situation in Housing area , that’s was really so close to cause the accident cause it’s on double line Main road…

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Ikram on Oct 17, 2014 at 4:55 pm

    Its odd how they can oust Uber from our streets without ever having been in one themselves. When was the last time these ‘enforcers’ and law-makers were in a red/yellow/blue/green taxi?! I was an early adopter for Uber, and to date, it hasnt disappointed! No matter how bad the traffic is, they are bound to come to my rescue! Not surprisingly, with a smile on their face and a “hello, sir!” as I step into the vehicle. Can’t say the same for our Malaysian taxi drivers and their jalopies. SPAD claims that Uber users are at risk as it is unsafe and unregulated. My comment to that is simple, yes, it may be ‘unregulated’ by SPAD, but if the regular taxis are in fact being regulated, what the actual f*** are they regulating?! They (the taxis) are squeeky, hot (as the a/c isnt functioning), and heck, I’ve even been one where the taxi cant even go beyond 3rd gear! I reiterate, what the actual f*** is that?! Not to mention the rude and unsavoury behaviour of these taxi drivers. Given a chance, they would rob us blind with their RM20 charges to get 400m in the city centre. If we refuse, they’ll just drive off!

    So, SPAD, if youre reading this, and I hope you are, what are you doing? Uber sets a benchmark for quality of service and creates job opportunities for locals (their interview process is rather tough, mind you). If you (SPAD) want to ban Uber and punish the people who use their service, then buck up and ‘regulate’ these taxis properly. Have your ‘operasi’ and punish the taxis that dont comply with what ever benchmarks that you have in place. Heed the needs and wants of the people, start a frikkin survey for all I care, but listen, and implement!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 0
  • The legality of this issue is simply absurd. If Uber is illegal then what about those ktv, massage hanky panky parlour, spa, casino and etc. these by right is not even legal and halal in Malaysia. But why are they allow to operate and deem legal? It’s simply because these businesses paid to their dues. If you are Malaysian you would definitely know what I mean. So don’t be a culprit and judge what’s legal and illegal.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
  • Md Ashraful Islam on May 03, 2016 at 2:43 am

    Foreign Student can drive uber taxi in malaysia????

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
 

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