Bad news, frequent cross-border commuters — the Land Transport Authority (LTA) has notified ride-sharing app Grab that their recently announced carpooling service GrabHitch JB-SG runs afoul of the law.
The good news is that Grab's simply giving away rides to-and-fro Johor Bahru and Singapore for free as a pilot programme that'll end on July 8.
Apparently, you can't freely allow Malaysian registered cars to provide "hire and reward" services in Singapore without a public service vehicle licence, and vice versa, according to the LTA. "Grab should ensure that any cross-border carpool service does not contravene Singaporean or Malaysian regulations," said an LTA spokesperson in response to media queries.