Ride-sharing operators in Malaysia will be required to install a panic or SOS button on their apps.
The Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) is pushing for this after a string of incidents involving passengers using Uber, with three reported cases over the past two weeks.
The latest case being a Vietnamese woman claiming to be molested by an Uber driver on Tuesday. The following day, the woman’s husband and nine people allegedly beat up the driver.
“We had a meeting with senior Malaysian Uber officials, and impressed upon them the gravity of the situation.
“For a start, Uber has to put in as soon as expeditiously possible the SOS button, which will be linked to law enforcement,” said SPAD chief Mohd Azharuddin Mat Sah.
While there’s no set timeline for this, it is understood that Uber already has a similar SOS button installed for its operations in India.
Another popular e-hailing service, Grab, will also be required to install this feature onto their app.
As part of Putrajaya’s move to regular e-hailing services, operators are also expected to provide their drivers’ data to SPAD this month.
