The government has urged users of e-hailing services who do not agree with the spike in fares to opt for other modes of transportation.
This is because the e-hailing service is provided on a willing buyer-willing seller basis, Deputy Transport Minister Henry Sum Agong said in the Dewan Negara today.
"Passengers are free to book with any e-hailing provider and can agree or disagree with the fares quoted.
"If they disagree, they can use other modes of public transportation like taxi services," he added.
He was responding to Senator Lim Pay Hen, who asked what action the ministry will take on e-hailing service providers who charge exorbitant fares.
Henry (above) added that fares spiked because there was a surge in demand for e-hailing services, as the economy opened up on the road to Covid-19 endemicity.
On top of that, he said many e-hailing drivers stopped working to return to full-time jobs elsewhere.
This has resulted in a lack of drivers to cope with the higher demand.
No answer to 'soft monopoly'
Lim also asked what the government will do to ensure more competition in the sector, but Henry side-stepped the question.
He again tried to evade a question when Senator Dominic Lau asked what the government is doing to confront the "soft monopoly" in the industry, which is almost entirely controlled by one provider.
Instead, Henry listed out requirements for drivers, including insurance coverage and licences.
When pressed by Lau, the deputy minister finally said the Transport Ministry will look into the matter but did not make firm commitments.
E-hailing fares surged up to 400 percent, especially in Klang Valley, following the lifting of movement restrictions to control the spread of Covid-19, prompting a public outcry.
In May, the Transport Ministry promised to monitor the situation and analyse proposals for a fare regulatory mechanism.
Although there are more than 10 e-hailing service providers in Malaysia, the market is largely captured by Grab.
At the time, the ministry said gridlock traffic in cities, following the reopening of the economy, was also a factor in the price surge.
Besides worsening traffic jams and a rise in e-hailing fares, there are ongoing reports of congestion in rail transport coaches and platforms, compounding the woes of Klang Valley commuters amid rising Covid-19 infections.
BM word for e-hailing
Meanwhile, Dewan Negara speaker Rais Yatim urged the ministry to find a Bahasa Malaysia term for e-hailing, instead of using the English one.
He proposed the term "e-laungan", but said the ministry may check if the Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka already has a term in the national language that it could use.
Rais, a champion of the national language, also took a dig against Lau's use of the English term "soft monopoly", and asked how "monopoli lembut" (soft monopoly) would differ from a "monopoli keras" (hard monopoly). - Mkini
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