27-05-2025
Speed limiters for heavy vehicles offer chance for ‘mindset change'
SINGAPORE – Lucky Joint Construction (LJC) has enjoyed savings on fuel and maintenance costs since installing speed limiters on most of its heavy vehicles.
That is on top of the devices' main benefit – preventing speeding.
Mr Calvin Yeow, chief executive of LJC, a telecommunication infrastructure provider, said: 'We do believe that with the enhancement of these speed limiters, they can actually ensure real-time prevention (against speeding).'
He was speaking at an event on May 27 where the media got to see the speed limiter up close for the first time since the device – roughly twice the size of a wallet – was made mandatory for heavy vehicles in Singapore.
When a driver of a vehicle fitted with a speed limiter tries to rev beyond 60kmh, the engine does not respond – the vehicle maintains a speed of 60kmh.
Since January 2024 , companies with heavy vehicles with a maximum laden weight of between 3,501kg and 12,000kg began installing speed limiters. Vehicle owners have been given two to three years to install the device.
From Jan 1, 2026, newly imported vehicles of that capacity must be equipped with speed limiters in order to be approved for use in Singapore.
As at the end of 2024, around 50 lorries which are required to install the speed limiters have done so, said Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam in a written Parliamentary reply on Jan 7 .
About 17,000 eligible lorries are required to install the mandatory speed limiters.
'Speed limiters are really going to help drivers plan their journey,' said Mr Tony Lugg, chief executive of Project Argus, which brings in the AutoKontrol speed limiter showcased at the media event.
'They should slow them down, so they have more time to make decisions before they encounter an incident, as well as (save on) the wear and tear factors on the vehicle and, obviously, overall fuel savings.'
Mr Lugg told the media that speed limiters offer a mindset change and a calming effect for heavy vehicle drivers – drivers would be forced to readjust their driving style, rather than driving too fast.
But Mr Moses Lim, a director of NLT Vehicle Service, which installs speed limiters, said some heavy vehicle companies appear to be holding back on the installation of the devices.
'We always have this pool of companies that will just sit back and look at how others are doing,' said Mr Lim when describing the slow take-up rate of speed limiters.
About 17,000 eligible lorries are required to install the mandatory speed limiters.
ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN
Mr Yeow said companies should not delay in getting speed limiters installed.
'If you... have the 'wait-and-see' approach, it'll be like a VEP (Malaysia's Vehicle Entry Permit) rush. You won't have time to do your operational planning,' he added.
LJC started installing speed limiters in its heavy vehicles in March , providing another preventive measure against speeding in addition to other initiatives the company has implemented, such as a network operations centre.
LJC's senior manager Jeyaraj Jenkin said speed limiters have helped his company save on fuel bills and vehicle maintenance for 67 of its 79 heavy vehicles installed with the device, which costs about $900 each.
LJC's senior manager Jeyaraj Jenkin said speed limiters have helped his company save on fuel bills and vehicle maintenance.
ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN
He added: 'In the past two years, I could see there were no speed-related accidents (with vehicles fitted with speed limiters and other internal preventive measures).'
Emphasising the importance of installing speed limiters, a police spokesman at the event said 'there are still heavy vehicle drivers always in a hurry'.
On Jan 21 , two people were killed in a morning accident on the Bukit Timah Expressway involving a lorry. The aftermath of the accident showed a stationary white lorry on the first lane of the expressway with a motorcycle near its rear.
On March 24 , a 27-year-old motorcyclist died after he was involved in a collision with a lorry on the Seletar Expressway.
In May , a total of 81 errant drivers of heavy vehicles were issued summonses following a three-day islandwide enforcement blitz, for offences such as speeding, using a mobile communication device while driving, failing to keep left and failing to visibly display a speed limiter label.
Project Argus said the AutoKontrol speed limiter takes around 30 minutes to install and is sealed and tamper-proof. When there are signs of tampering during an annual inspection, the installer will inform the police.
During the installation of the speed limiter, which comes with a three-year warranty, the vehicle will be road-tested and its speed calibrated. Installation can be done wherever the vehicles are located.
The Traffic Police will be reviewing laws to strengthen deterrence against speed limiter offences such as tampering and non-compliant speed limiters, and against unauthorised speed limiter works. More details will be announced later.
Zaihan Mohamed Yusof is senior crime correspondent at The Straits Times.
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