ERP increase

As I had anticipated, news of the ERP increase were not greeted warmly by drivers. Complaints were already coming into my office as soon as Raymond announced them. There was no way to prevent the outcry. We can minimise it, control it, manage it. But we must press on with this move. It is the only way to keep a lid on the growing traffic.

I want you, my fellow Singaporean, to know that I understand the hit on your wallet. I also want you to know that this is the best solution that we have. We worked out a few scenarios, some less expensive, some immensely more. In the end, we hit the middle ground, and we think that this is the most workable outcome that we have.

The LTA is hard at work to ensure that the implementation goes on smoothly. They will be monitoring traffic on these heavy utilised roads to ensure that speeds remain within the acceptable range. If necessary, we may tweak the system a bit more, which means another round of ERP increase.

The computer models show that traffic patterns will change, meaning more vehicles on less busy roads. We need to distribute the traffic so that everyone gets where they need to quickly. We must work together to keep traffic flowing smoothhly. We don't want traffic jams, like what you have in Bangkok and Beijing. Is that really what you want? You decide.

By now, you should also realise that this is not the last increase in ERP. As I said before, "man man lei". Slowly does it. We will continue to adjust the system until it fits our needs perfectly. A balance between road usage and payments. In the meantime, Raymond and his LTA will continue collecting feedback. We value them all. Please let us know how we're doing.