Reports of ERP hikes from June fake: LTA
Reports of increased Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) rates to take effect in June are false, said the Land Transport Authority (LTA) on May 5.
In a Facebook post, LTA debunked claims circulating on "some websites and social media pages" asserting toll hikes of between 50 cents and $1 during peak periods at the major gantries.
These included gantries located on the CTE, PIE, AYE and MCE.
LTA has not announced the ERP rates for June, it said, and reminded road users to always refer to LTA's official channels for the latest information.
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Business Times
12 hours ago
- Business Times
About 5,400 cars have encountered issues with ERP on-board unit after installation
[SINGAPORE] Around 5,400 cars have had problems with their Electronic Road Pricing on-board units (OBUs) since installation started in November 2023, including issues with wiring that have necessitated return visits to workshops. This represents 1.8 per cent of around 300,000 cars that have had the unit installed so far, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) told The Straits Times on Tuesday (Jun 10). LTA said that as at June, more than 500,000 vehicles – including other vehicle types such as commercial vehicles – have been fitted with OBUs. This means the installation exercise has crossed the halfway mark towards equipping the entire vehicle population of around 1 million units with OBUs by 2026. The OBUs are used for road toll and carpark payments, among other things, as part of Singapore's move to the new ERP system, known as ERP 2.0. LTA said: 'As with any large-scale technology roll-out, some vehicles may experience issues that require follow-up checks.' Some motorists told ST they could not enter carparks or pay road charges with their OBUs, which became unresponsive. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up A spokesman for Lim Tan Motor in Sin Ming said owners of around 5 per cent of the 200 or so cars on which the workshop has installed OBUs had gone back for help, mostly because carpark gantries could not detect the units. He said this is more common at private and commercial building carparks than at those operated by the Housing Board. Another complaint is that the touchscreen display of the OBU freezes. OBU installation is free for all vehicles registered before May 1, 2024, if the unit is installed by the deadline stated in an LTA invitation letter to owners. All vehicles registered from May 1, 2024, are fitted with the unit. Depending on the vehicle, an OBU installation takes between two and four hours, and it can take just as long to troubleshoot and replace the unit. For vehicles other than motorcycles, the OBU consists of three parts: an antenna, a processing unit that holds the stored-value card, and an optional touchscreen display. Service and workshop manager Lester Yeong, 48, said the OBU touchscreen display on the van leased by his company, an industrial equipment supplier, showed a blank screen in April – five months after the unit was installed. The leasing company that provided the van managed to fix the issue once at its workshop, but the problem resurfaced two days later. This time, the faulty OBU was replaced. The OBU touchscreen display on Christian Gani's BMW sport utility vehicle acted up two months after it was installed, with the display stuck in booting-up mode. In May, the information technology professional at a bank had to call for help via the buzzer at his office carpark gantry, because the system could not detect the OBU in his car, which had been registered for season parking. The OBU remained in the booting-up mode throughout his journey home. There was no beep from the system when he passed an operational ERP gantry, but he did not receive any fine for that. The screen continued to be stuck in this mode the next day, prompting Gani to drive the car to the BMW agent, which eventually replaced the OBU. 'The OBU just failed suddenly without warning and caused me so much inconvenience. Hopefully, it doesn't fail on me again,' said Gani. The OBU on Nigel Yong's Mini Cooper failed within days of being installed. As he opted not to have a touchscreen display, the 35-year-old public relations manager did not notice anything amiss until he could not leave the carpark near his Housing Board flat in February. He had to ask the carpark staff for help and verify his vehicle registration number before the gantry was lifted. The OBU resumed working after a few days and functioned normally until it suddenly became unresponsive in May. Yong could not wait for an appointment with the workshop that installed his OBU, so he visited another workshop that told him he would have to pay for a replacement unit unless he returned to the previous workshop. He paid S$380 for the replacement instead of bearing with the inconvenience of having to return to the first workshop. LTA advised motorists who experience issues with their OBUs to return to the workshops that installed the units. This is because those workshops would have the necessary records 'for more effective troubleshooting'. 'In a small number of cases where more specialised attention is needed, the workshop may refer motorists to another workshop with the relevant expertise,' the authority added. Motorists who need clarification can contact the ERP 2.0 Call Assist Service on 6377-2255. THE STRAITS TIMES
Straits Times
13 hours ago
- Straits Times
About 5,400 cars have encountered issues with ERP on-board unit after installation
The on-board units in some cars became unresponsive and had to be replaced. ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG About 5,400 cars have encountered issues with ERP on-board unit after installation SINGAPORE - Drivers of around 5,400 cars have faced problems with their Electronic Road Pricing on-board units (OBUs) , including issues with wiring that have necessitated return visits to workshops. This represents 1.8 per cent of around 300,000 cars that have had the unit installed so far , the Land Transport Authority (LTA) told The Straits Times on June 10. LTA said that as at June, more than 500,000 vehicles - including other vehicle types such as commercial vehicles - have been fitted with OBUs since installation started in November 2023. This means the installation exercise has crossed the halfway mark towards equipping the entire vehicle population of around 1 million units with OBUs by 2026. The OBUs are used for road toll and carpark payments, among other things, as part of Singapore's move to the new ERP system, known as ERP 2.0. LTA said: 'As with any large-scale technology roll-out, some vehicles may experience issues that require follow-up checks.' Some motorists told ST they could not enter carparks or pay road charges with their OBUs , which became unresponsive. A spokesman for Lim Tan Motor in Sin Ming said owners of around 5 per cent of the 200 or so cars on which the workshop has installed OBUs have come back for help, mostly because the carpark gantries could not detect the units. He said this is more common at private and commercial building carparks than at those operated by the Housing Board. Another complaint is that the touchscreen display freezes . OBU installation is free for all vehicles registered before May 1, 2024, if the unit is installed by the deadline stated in an LTA invitation letter to owners . All vehicles registered from May 1, 2024, have come fitted with the unit. Depending on the vehicle, an OBU installation takes between two and four hours, and it can take just as long to troubleshoot and replace the unit. For vehicles other than motorcycles, the OBU consists of three parts: an antenna, a processing unit that holds the stored-value card, and an optional touchscreen display. For service and workshop manager Lester Yeong, 48, the OBU touchscreen display on the van that his company , an industrial equipment supplier, leased showed a blank screen in April - five months after the unit was installed. The leasing company that provided the van managed to fix it once at its workshop , but the problem resurface d two days later. This prompted another visit to the workshop. This time, the faulty OBU was replaced. Mr Christian Gani's OBU touchscreen display on his BMW sport utility vehicle acted up two months after it was installed , with the display stuck in booting-up mode. In May, the information technology professional at a bank had to call for help via the buzzer at his office carpark's gantry , because the system could not detect his car's OBU. This is despite his car being registered for season parking . The OBU remained in this booting-up mode throughout his journey home. There was no beep from the system when he passed an operational ERP gantry, but he did not receive any fine for that. The screen continued to be stuck in this mode the next day, prompting Mr Gani to send the car to the BMW agent, which eventually replac ed the OBU. 'The OBU just failed suddenly without warning and caused me so much inconvenience. Hopefully, it doesn't fail on me again too soon,' said Mr Gani. The OBU on Mr Nigel Yong's Mini Cooper car failed within days of being installed. As he opted not to have a touchscreen display, the 35-year-old public relations manager did not notice anything amiss until he could not leave the carpark near his Housing Board flat in February. He had to ask the carpark staff for help and verify his vehicle registration number before the gantry was lifted. The OBU resumed working after a few days and functioned normally until it suddenly became unresponsive in May. Mr Yong could not wait for an appointment with the workshop that installed his OBU, so he visited another workshop that told him he would have to pay for a replacement unit unless he returns to the earlier workshop. He paid $380 for the replacement, as he was irked by the inconvenience of having to return to the first workshop. LTA advised motorists who experience issues with their OBUs to return to the workshops that installed the units. This is because those workshops would have the necessary records 'for more effective troubleshooting '. 'In a small number of cases where more specialised attention is needed, the workshop may refer motorists to another workshop with the relevant expertise,' the authority added. Motorists who need clarification can contact the ERP 2.0 Call Assist Service on 6377-2255. Lee Nian Tjoe is senior transport correspondent at The Straits Times, where he also oversees the Motoring section. Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.
Business Times
a day ago
- Business Times
China's WeRide, Malaysia's Causeway Link among firms bidding to run driverless public buses in S'pore
[SINGAPORE] The local offshoot of Chinese self-driving technology company WeRide and a consortium led by Malaysian bus operator Handal Indah, also known as Causeway Link, are among four companies that have submitted bids to participate in a trial of autonomous public bus services here. The Land Transport Authority (LTA) called a tender in January seeking proposals for the trial, which is slated to start from mid-2026, on two public bus routes – one in Marina Bay and Shenton Way, and the other in one-north in Buona Vista. The tender, which closed on June 9 and is expected to be awarded by the end of 2025, drew four submissions in total. Apart from WeRide (Singapore) and the Handal Indah consortium, the other two tenderers are vehicle distributor Cycle & Carriage Automotive and another consortium led by MKX Technologies. According to business records, MKX Technologies was incorporated in Singapore in April and has two shareholders. The majority owner is X Star Technology, a Singapore subsidiary of Chinese online vehicle financing company Yixin Group, and the minority owner is MK.X, a Japanese electric car-sharing company. A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU Friday, 8.30 am Asean Business Business insights centering on South-east Asia's fast-growing economies. Sign Up Sign Up Government procurement website GeBiz did not state the other companies that make up the Handal Indah and MKX Technologies consortiums. The Straits Times has contacted WeRide, Handal Indah, Cycle & Carriage and X Star Technology for comment. LTA previously said that it will start the trial by buying six autonomous buses with at least 16 seats and deploying them on bus services 400 and 191. This is so the authority can assess the feasibility of self-driving technology for public bus services and gain operational insights. Former transport minister Chee Hong Tat had said that the use of autonomous vehicles would help to address pressing manpower challenges in the public transport sector, where it has been difficult to hire drivers. LTA's plan is for the autonomous public buses to operate alongside existing manned buses for an initial three-year period. Depending on how they perform, LTA may buy up to 14 more autonomous buses to expand the trial to two more routes later. LTA said it chose to trial the self-driving buses on services 400 and 191 because they are shorter and simpler routes. The authority is also taking a phased approach so it can thoroughly assess the reliability of autonomous vehicle technology while ensuring public safety. During the initial phase of the trial, the self-driving buses will have bus drivers on board to act as safety operators, and the buses will be monitored in real time by LTA. Extra safeguards, such as requiring all passengers to be seated and to wear seat belts, will be put in place, and a remote safety operator will be allowed to take over the supervisory role only after at least six months of testing. LTA had said that the autonomous vehicle developer selected for the trial will have to work with public transport operator SBS Transit, which runs services 400 and 191, to come up with operational concepts and plans for operating the autonomous public buses. The authority said it will evaluate the proposals it receives based on the maturity of the technology, the record of the autonomous vehicle developer and its ability to meet operational needs. Other factors being considered include the supporting infrastructure, such as fleet management and vehicle charging systems. WeRide, which holds driveless vehicle operator permits in China, the US, the United Arab Emirates and France, is no stranger to self-driving vehicle operations in Singapore. Since April 2024, it has been running an autonomous shuttle bus service at integrated resort Resorts World Sentosa. Two of WeRide's driverless road sweepers have also been on trial on public roads in the Marina coastal area since October 2024. Handal Indah has some autonomous vehicle know-how, too, via company founder Lim Han Weng's other business, Yinson Holdings. In 2021, Yinson backed Singapore-based autonomous vehicle start-up MooVita, which today operates a driverless shuttle bus service at Ngee Ann Polytechnic – albeit with a safety driver on board. THE STRAITS TIMES
