THE six additional Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) gantries slated to come onstream in November may not be built
all at once, said Transport Minister Raymond Lim yesterday.

Speaking at a Singapore Press Club luncheon, Mr Lim said traffic flow on several roads in the city has improved since the Land Transport Authority (LTA) unveiled a slew of ERP changes in July.

"If this is sustained, then LTA will be happy to review the plan," the minister said. "It may then need to put up only few gantries rather than all six."

The proposed new gantries are in Commonwealth Avenue, Jalan Bukit Merah, Serangoon Road, Alexandra Road, the Ayer Rajah Expressway (west-bound near Alexandra Road) and the Pan-Island Expressway (west-bound near Eunos).

The six, which are yet to be built, are among two dozen or so gantries being added to Singapore roads this year.

In places where new gantries are up and running, the impact has been noticeable.

Five along the Singapore River, along with extended operating hours for others,have improved travelling speeds in the city.

Motorists who had been bracing themselves for the six new gantries are keeping their fingers crossed.

Motor trader Steve Poh, 53, who works at a car dealership in the Alexandra Road showroom belt, said: 'Any gantry
that is not coming up is a good thing.'

Motorist Karen Choo, 29, who works off Alexandra Road and who travels past Bukit Merah often, said:

'If this really happens, of course it would be good news.'

In his speech, Mr Lim reiterated the need for ERP by raising the analogy of an overweight person who refuses to go on a diet. "Your weight continues to grow and, sooner or later, one day, you are in trouble.By then, dieting is no longer enough.More drastic measures are needed."

He said high fuel prices in recent months have persuaded some motorists to try public transport. This has driven
bus and train ridership to historic highs.

He said if commuters' experience on public transport improves, those who recently switched may stick with it, even if fuel prices fall. "In other words, we have a unique window of opportunity now to sustain a decisive shift towards public transport."

Meanwhile, the minister said commuters will have to get used to making more transfers. This is expected to happen when the LTA enhances the hub-andspoke system for buses and when the rail network expands.

"Ultimately, transfers are an integral feature of our hub-and spoke public transport network," he said.

Currently, people making transfers end up paying more than if they had travelled the same distance on, say, one bus. Mr Lim said this penalty distorts commuter behaviour "by discouraging people from making transfers when it is more efficient to do so".

From next month, the majority of commuters who make transfers regularly 'could see a small or even negative fare adjustment' when a new distance-based fare system kicks in. But commuters who make mostly direct trips may end up with higher commuting expenses.
"Some commentators called this trade-off...'robbing Peter to pay Paul'," Mr Lim said. "They ignore the fact that at
present, it is Paul who is being unfairly asked to keep Peter's direct fares lower than they should be."

The minister told the audience of 200 that 'consultation is an integral part of policymaking'.

"It has helped us make better policies," he said, citing the example of giving cash to people who scrap their cars.

Previously, they got only paper rebates which could be used to offset taxes on a new car.

Since the new policy kicked in on Monday,the LTA has received nearly 4,000 applications for 'encashment' of scrap
rebates as well as certificates of entitlement (COEs) which have not completed their lifespan.  

This article was first published in The Straits Times on Sep 6, 2008.

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