Choo Zheng Xi
An angry tongue-in-cheek critique of ERP hikes (TOC op-ed).
If you are superstitious, a cave-in in the Central Business District (CBD) that left a 5m-wide hole in the ground could be more than bad engineering.It happened on the same day it was announced that five new Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) gantries were to go up by 7 July, bringing the islandwide total to a eye-popping 65.
However, signs are never easy to interpret. So if I were asked about what exactly the cave-in could be symbolic of, I would have to choose from several plausible answers.
1. Collapse in the credibility of the mainstream media
Anyone who read the front page article on the Straits Times would have been left slightly puzzled. How could such bad news have come off sounding so good? Upon deeper thought, that bewilderment will turn to anger, tinged with grudging respect for an excellently-disguised propaganda effort.
To add salt to the visceral pain any sane motorist would feel at this piece of bad news, the front page of the Straits Times trumpeted, in its subtitle, how “changes are aimed at making city traffic flow smoothly in the evenings”.
To me, this is the equivalent of cutting off someone’s legs to save him the fatigue of walking and expecting him to feel gratitude.
To add insult to injury, the article goes on to extensively quote from the Land Transport Authority (LTA) playbook, offering the public statistic after shocking statistic of ever-slowing road speeds. In the body of the article, an LTA spokesman offers the coup de grace: “The majority of people who pay do not get that experience [of uncongested driving].”
The logical conclusion, naturally, is that we should make it more expensive for more people to pay, hence making the experience more enjoyable for the ones left who can.
Taken to its logical conclusion, the last private cars left on the road in Singapore 2050 will belong to the well-paid individuals who made the policies which taxed everyone else off the roads.
If that’s not perverse, I don’t know what is.
This might have been mitigated if the ST featured a perspective from someone who actually drove a car without a motorcade.
Unfortunately, the other voices in the article belonged to Member of Parliament and head of the Government Parliamentary Committee (GPC) for Transport Mr Cedric Foo, and his deputy chairman, Mr Ong Kian Ming. Because of their service to our country, they are millionaires (they don’t actually have motorcades).
Or perhaps I am just narrow minded, unable to see the big picture, and we really should thank the Government for helping us smoothen the gravelled arteries of our county.
Unfortunately, we have little to be thankful for, which brings me on to the next possible interpretation of the cave in.
2. Collapse in the ingenuity of our leadership
It never strikes me how incapable our top civil servants are of finding a creative solution out of the problem we’re in.
The syllogism by which they’ve derived the solution is as follows:
1) There is congestion from people driving cars.
2) People drive less if they have to pay more.
3) Ergo, the more we make people pay, the less they will drive, hence eradicating the scourge of congestion.
This syllogism might make us all happier if there was a corresponding cap or decrease in cost of public transport. Unfortunately, the “Private Vehicle Department” people and the “Public Transport Division” staff do not seem to be on talking terms. Taxi fares have recently gone up, and bus fares were last raised in September 2007. Call this a hunch, but I feel another public transport price hike in the air.
This leads to the sad conclusion that many of us will soon be walking to work in the CBD. Good luck to you if you live in Pasir Ris.
The use of the language of the criminal law is indicative of how the establishment views driving. Motorist need to be “deterred” from driving by a starting deduction of $2, as “it has become increasingly more difficult to deter motorists with 50-cent jumps”.
It has become apparent that Singaporeans are completely sanitised to this miniscule increment. In fact, with ever-increasing wages, job prospects, and inflation, monetary disincentive is next to meaningless.
So why stop at the language of the criminal law, when you can actually use the full force of the damn thing? A more creative method of solving this problem is to mandate specific days on which motorists are allowed to drive according to the colour of their car, and penalise the black sheep (or cars) that break this coding system with mandatory imprisonment. As the roads will be packed with uniformly-coloured vehicles, violators will be easily spotted.
As there are seven colours of the rainbow, we can have one for every day of the week, so no motorist needs to be left behind.
3. Collapse of the Singaporean dream
Is the Government trying to lose the next elections? Despite Mr Foo’s protestations that “We should not mix up road usage measures like ERP with means to cope with general inflation”, I think the verdict of the motorcade-less masses will be unanimous: this is bad timing par excellence.
Perhaps to test the waters of public opinion for the sharks of dissatisfaction, Mr Foo and Mr Ong have been unhappily chosen to be the first to defend the hikes. One almost feels sorry for them. Almost.
Coming on the back of increased prices of basic foodstuffs like rice, vegetables and chicken, the Government isn’t just shooting itself in the foot, it is taking a machine gun to its leg.
But, the Government will protest, people who fret over the price of basic necessities are not the ones who drive anyway!
And this is where, in all seriousness, the Government has completely lost touch with the sentiments of its people.
Those who are turning to temples for free food handouts today are precisely those who are dreaming so fervently of a better tomorrow. Materialistic as it may sound, many Singaporeans from all strata of society look forward to the day when they get their own car keys. The stories most prominently highlighted in the Straits Times are of scholars or businessmen who came from humble backgrounds and who have done well for themselves.
Pride in private ownership is a sentiment that our Government, which has based its rule on a foundation of economic performance legitimacy, should understand well.
It would be the darkest hypocrisy for them now to put this dream out of the reach of the ordinary Singaporean by pricing us off the roads and then have their propagandists make us believe they are doing this for our own good.
If these are the guys behind our country’s steering wheel, I can’t help wishing they’d hand over the car keys to someone else.
*The title of this article has been changed from its original one by request from the author.
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what to do? it has happened, so let’s put in more ERP and move on!
Hi; Fever Guy and C J
imho, it is definitely not right to put blame on OPC Owners and the Right to a driving licence by anyone who qualified for it.
As the reasons to road congestions are many and mainly due to poor public transport plannings and services, the Solutions must and should be centred on overcoming these lapses. Many in TOC might remember that there was an article written about Public Transportations and in that article, there were many valueable comments and the Writer himself had put in much efforts in researching the contents of his Article, yet, all that seemed not considered or maybe even unread by the relevant Authorities. Indeed, it was liked casting pearls before swines. Nevertheless, personally, I wish that blames cannot be put onto innocent parties, when their deeds arose from the mistakes of policies.
And should anyone only capable of suggesting fiscal/monetary measures to overcome any problems, do check if your solution(s) is any better than what our leaders have been dishing out all these while and that means fines, levies, tolls etc. Many of us in the Blogosphere are sensitive to the Fact that this tiny country has too much un-utilized monies, much of which are from money making schemes from national implementations. Maybe un-utilized is not the right description, but I cannot allude that the multi-million SIN Dollars Remunerations of our leaders are from those money making implementations. Neither can I link those multi billion dollars investments in those fizzling banks with said monies(from fines, levies etc), though I feel much of these monies are not used to benefit us, the People.
This post is not meant to be personal, I just wish that no blame goes to innocents and the uninvolved. Do correct me.
patriot.
Tan Kin Lian,
You said, “I hope that our government ministers and officials, and members of the Public Transport Council will show the example to the public transport and experience it first hand. ”
I say, don’t hold your breath. The day our ministers and members of PTC take public transport on a regular basis would be the day when the sun rises from the west!!!
Jackson Tan,
You are one of those that have been readin too much of The Straits Times. You even sound like its reporter.
The govt has gotten its priorities all wrong. They should be greatly improving public transport to the point where people actually PREFER to take them. Due to the fact that our policy makers don’t take public transport on a regular basis, they don’t have the slightest clue how overcrowded the tardy the system is. Look at HK and Tokyo. Commuters there don’t complain about having to take public transport. Why?? Because their public transport is really superb. I have lived in Tokyo and HK previously.
Did our govt think about how much more overcrowded the trains and buses would be when more commuters change to taking public transport with the incessant increase in ERP???
Read the extent of lies by the million-dollars minister
http://wpsn.wordpress.com/2008/03/07/st-20080307/
““That’s not the way we do things. You know that it’s a congestion measure and if there are indeed roads in there that are congested, ERP would have been effected.”
and contrast it to the following forum letter: Still think ERP is not money-spinner and it’s main purpose not generating money ?
=====================================================
Letter from Roy Chan
THE recent Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) revision has caught me by surprise. In particular, the extension of ERP on Saturdays into the Suntec City and Marina Square area is unnecessary and ill-timed.
Firstly, for the past three years, I have driven into the Marina area with my family every Saturday between noon to 6pm. Not once have we experienced traffic congestion. Even with the recent PC Show at Suntec City, which reportedly drew close to a million visitors, I did not face any problem with traffic, apart from the lack of parking space.
Secondly, the MRT Circle Line is not ready. Implementing ERP at this time leaves people with no choice, especially for those who find it difficult to get there by bus. My wife is pregnant and I have two young children, so taking buses or walking from City Hall MRT station is not an option. What more can we expect of old people and those with disabilities?
Thirdly, taxi charges have increased recently, as fuel prices have hit record highs and inflation is taking a toll on common folk. Why is there a need to charge ERP at a place and time where there have not been complaints of traffic congestion on Saturdays?
While we know that the Land Transport Authority (LTA) is trying its best to improve the public transport system, why can’t it wait until the MRT Circle Line is ready before implementing ERP in this area on Saturdays? Why can’t it wait until fuel prices drop, or until inflation decreases? My message to the LTA is: Please help those whom you are intending to serve, not add on to their already-heavy burden by taxing their pocket unnecessarily.
No problem of weekend congestion in Suntec City area, one reader says
Letter from Roy Chan
THE recent Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) revision has caught me by surprise. In particular, the extension of ERP on Saturdays into the Suntec City and Marina Square area is unnecessary and ill-timed.
Firstly, for the past three years, I have driven into the Marina area with my family every Saturday between noon to 6pm. Not once have we experienced traffic congestion. Even with the recent PC Show at Suntec City, which reportedly drew close to a million visitors, I did not face any problem with traffic, apart from the lack of parking space.
Secondly, the MRT Circle Line is not ready. Implementing ERP at this time leaves people with no choice, especially for those who find it difficult to get there by bus. My wife is pregnant and I have two young children, so taking buses or walking from City Hall MRT station is not an option. What more can we expect of old people and those with disabilities?
Thirdly, taxi charges have increased recently, as fuel prices have hit record highs and inflation is taking a toll on common folk. Why is there a need to charge ERP at a place and time where there have not been complaints of traffic congestion on Saturdays?
While we know that the Land Transport Authority (LTA) is trying its best to improve the public transport system, why can’t it wait until the MRT Circle Line is ready before implementing ERP in this area on Saturdays? Why can’t it wait until fuel prices drop, or until inflation decreases? My message to the LTA is: Please help those whom you are intending to serve, not add on to their already-heavy burden by taxing their pocket unnecessarily.
No problem of weekend congestion in Suntec City area, one reader says
Letter from Roy Chan
THE recent Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) revision has caught me by surprise. In particular, the extension of ERP on Saturdays into the Suntec City and Marina Square area is unnecessary and ill-timed.
Firstly, for the past three years, I have driven into the Marina area with my family every Saturday between noon to 6pm. Not once have we experienced traffic congestion. Even with the recent PC Show at Suntec City, which reportedly drew close to a million visitors, I did not face any problem with traffic, apart from the lack of parking space.
Secondly, the MRT Circle Line is not ready. Implementing ERP at this time leaves people with no choice, especially for those who find it difficult to get there by bus. My wife is pregnant and I have two young children, so taking buses or walking from City Hall MRT station is not an option. What more can we expect of old people and those with disabilities?
Thirdly, taxi charges have increased recently, as fuel prices have hit record highs and inflation is taking a toll on common folk. Why is there a need to charge ERP at a place and time where there have not been complaints of traffic congestion on Saturdays?
While we know that the Land Transport Authority (LTA) is trying its best to improve the public transport system, why can’t it wait until the MRT Circle Line is ready before implementing ERP in this area on Saturdays? Why can’t it wait until fuel prices drop, or until inflation decreases? My message to the LTA is: Please help those whom you are intending to serve, not add on to their already-heavy burden by taxing their pocket unnecessarily.
The letter taken from
http://www.todayonline.com/articles/260828.asp
I guess the gahmen needs more money now after putting our hard earned money in stupid investments and long-term commitments. Need to fill up the coffers!
Look at what GCT said about right ingredients and master chef. I think Singapore is the recipe for disasters. The way ST writes what GCT said is truly brainwashing to the MAX!
FG
patriot,
There can never be more roads to built with the limited land. Therefore owning a car is by all means not a basic need. I dun see why weekend cars should be encouraged and to be make popular. I dun see why goods carrier vehicle should be abused like a private car. They emit alot of pollutants and you can get a second hand kangoo for as little as 15k. The type of policy can actually help limit vehicle growth and using ERP is by no means a good way. We should look at what type of scheme and vehicles are causing the inbalance.
FG
They really put a lot of people of into unease. Why would you want to increase prices of public services when at the same time we have hundreds of billions in the reserves during this period of high inflation.
While imported inflation cannot be controlled, surely pricing of internal services (ERP in our case) which do not consume a single bit of imported product / services except the electricity used to run it can be controlled.
Is all about $$$$$$$$, the real motive is not congestion control is profit generation! After ERP, come sept public transport probably asking for fees hike due to high oil prices. Later you have empolyer CPF contibution reduction due to economy slowing down. All sorts of crap these gahmen can think of. Town council and parking fees might even go up before the year ended. Singapore Power will just pass more costs to consumer … did you guys receive a booklet on how to save electricity and water. Think harder and you will know that big increase in charges are coming their way. Educate the sheeps first before the slaughter comes.
Believe in Justice!
FG
RO,
“Tan Kin Lian,
You said, “I hope that our government ministers and officials, and members of the Public Transport Council will show the example to the public transport and experience it first hand. ”
I say, don’t hold your breath. The day our ministers and members of PTC take public transport on a regular basis would be the day when the sun rises from the west!!!”
I took public transport from young till i am 28. To me the greater changes recently are the overcrowded trains and buses. Poor frequencies and connected routes. If a VIP minister going to take a bus or train please do it secretly so that he/she can feel the real impact. No poiint having SMRT/SBS making everything cosy and nice for VIP to take the ride and conclude everything is fine. Stop fooling us, ministers! I think our million dollar ministers are taken for a ride by money grabbing corporations who treated them like babies. It is really important to have more compeitition in public transport sector. The gahmen should get its act together soon or face a rout in elections. I definitely vote for a gahmen who can better provide the people with a good transportation system that is affordable and efficient. Now it is a far cry!
FG
Fever Guy,
before all those hikes, you see MSM and the ministers as usual become overwhelming optimistic about the future that inflation will cease in a year time, and that everything back to normal ! Well, then after few days later, you also see the ministers talking very gloomily and asking us to tide the incoming weather !
Amazing coffers who do nothing but keep feeding damn f#$#$king lies in MSM.
Their tactics: It doesn’t matter if the end justify the means of getting $$$, and our conscience is clear because we always blame it on nation-building and economic growth !
Coffers’ tactic:
If you can’t convince the citizen, confuse them into submission and then quickly ‘move on’.
My additional comments. Yes, economically, you need ridership to justify to add, to improve and increase frequency of a route. Yes, majority of Us resides in HDB (86%?). Spare us the lecturing of the economic factors, educated or non-educated Singaporeans like me do know the math behind it. If you do not believe me, just ask any aunties or uncle in your constituencies doing their regular shopping chores. These are facts most of us are aware of and that we can never argue with, however, there are rooms for improvement.
I am a simple “senile” man. It is not too hard to fathom the transportation issue. ERP is not the primary route of the cause. I think you guys in the LTA have been thought the “KISS” principle in your university day right? Please put it to practice.
Here’s my plead to the LTA and the Ministry:
Organize a week long event and invite public living in Singapore, Hong Kong, Tokyo who frequently takes public transport. Open your mind frame and hear out the experience and suggestions for REAL improvements. Please be objective with think out of a box. It’s okay to admit for you guys to admit you are not perfect in planning. I think most of Us here in blogsphere or the common layman can accept that. However, if you do nothing that genuinely to the benefit of the public (in this case all living souls in Singapore). Stop your profiteering scheme. This is public infrastructure improvement not a corporate. You are doing the country a dis-service and if you are really responsible citizens, vacant your seat for other more able people. You would have been kicked out right away if you are now working in corporate. I for one am not afraid to admit I admire the “old man” LKY. I have a lot of respects and give a lot of credit for what he and his team had done for Singapore. Not forgetting us (the general public) in cooperating with his coercing policies ~ older generation folks like me knew we needed them during those early days to move the country along. So we bit the bullet and just accept it. Any feelings of hate? Yes, to be honest, but for the betterment of our future generation, we just have to take it in stride. But I am utterly disappointed to a point near repulsion with the younger lots. The old man is right. When he said Singaporeans are complacent, he is directing that comment to you people in position more than us the common citizens. We have no power whatsoever to change the policies and rules to better our country. You people in the parliament voted in by your supporting citizens are the keepers. You guys hold the key. I am sure you want to continue to keep it. If so, please “WAKE UP!” like you had experience in your early BMT days. 天亮了！该起床了。请记住，我们也是新加坡的一份子。
Meanwhile, have your planning team to re-work the frequency schedule of the MRT & Buses (oh please make sure we public know when we should be expecting the improvement of the schedule). Here’s my suggestion, make the frequency and waiting time shorter. The computer program handling the MRT can be change easily (otherwise you have not invested the public money wisely – Singapore got MRT running much later than Hong Kong if I am right).
@Observer
>>otherwise you have not invested the public money wisely – Singapore got MRT running much later than Hong Kong if I am right
>>
You are right on the spot. Singapore’s SMRT started operating in 1987 whereas Hong Kong’s MTR started operating in 1979. Yet you can tell that that MTR’s infrastructural improvements are much better than SMRT’s.
Also in Hong Kong, the bus companies and minibuses are the REAL competitors to the MTR because they are owned by different private corporations. In Singapore, SBS transit operates NEL and buses, enjoying total monpoloy especially in the Northeastern part of Singapore. I don’t have to elaborate more on SMRT who is also the second largest bus operator here.
Dear passerby,
Thank you for sharing the same sentiment. I am just trying to be constructively critical to the people running our LTA. This is my 9th year living and working in Hong Kong. But I am constantly in tune of what is happening in Singapore. Afterall, Singapore is still my home. I will be glad to unconditionally share my thoughts. Although there are other areas where SIngapore had done better than Hong Kong (housing is one although some might disagree).
My main point is our LTA and its ministry got to admit they have got rooms for improvement. As I mentioned, ERP is not the primary route cause of the problem. Have they got statistics on the percentage of ridership on public transportation? They do. Have they ever analyze these numbers to see whether further improvement are needed? I certainly hoipe so. But then when you look at what has been done the last 10 years ( I am not kidding when I say changes, literally zero). In my frequent home trips, the very thing that I always get annoyed is our public transportation. I do not drive, public transport is the only mean I have got to get around. A lot of agonizing taxis rides and I just could not bear to take the MRT. Why? I cannot never get to my desire destination without having to change multiple tranportation mean. What I suspected (purely speculation with no ill contempt) is that they knew it but how to do it without profiteering. The same argument goes IF that is what is in their mind, this is a government run facility. The common users are we “ordinary citizens” who had help contributed to our country’s well being. Please spare a thought for us. The other possible assumption is they are just plain complacent. Like the expression “It ain’t broken, why fix it”. They need to think out of the box and start exploring outside of their cocoon. The world is changing, very RAPIDLY indeed. The government kept on their local corporate preaching, think globalization. I think they need to take a hint on HSBC advertisement. “We are your Global Local Bank”. Think Global Act Local. There are areas where swift action can be called for such as our public transportation system. You do not need to be a rocket scientist to figure this out. The LTA and its ministry are elite people with intelligence choosen to run its operation. If you cannot figure out a way, please organize a tour outside of Singapore and look at how other countries are making it work (just like what China had done). The same applies to Hong Kong on their Governor official visit to Singapore to explore and garner ideas for improvement. Please, LTA and its ministry. Listen to your people. We are not FANATICS.
I bet you one hundred percentage that the system will be better run if it is wholly privatize. The government still plays a role though, not by inteferring with the operations but ensure that good governance practice such as mediating the price hike. That is exactly what the Hong Kong government did. Is this copying?yes you can say that, but what’s wrong copying if it really work?
Hey observer
“I bet you one hundred percentage that the system will be better run if it is wholly privatize.”
We have the same notion of privatization i think, which means solely in private hands and facing real market competition so that transport companies have to improve constantly in terms of prices and services to stay in business.
However, if you tell the Singapore Government that, they would prolly say: Look, SBS transit and SMRT are “privatised” too and they compete (a faulty logic which we all know). The Public Transport Council, an independent (even though i can’t see how independent it is) body regulates them. When people twist meanings to suit their needs, you can never engage them. I, for one, has totally gave up on “engagement” with the bureaucracy long time ago.
@passerby,
I am aware of this as well. But I think we should not give up hope just yet. Some people just need more time to adjust their mindset. Yes, they are bureaucratic (likewise elsewhere). Complacency will get them no where and I certainly hope this will not becomes a propaganda come election time. The change can be adopted now (well) give and take 3 months of adjustment period. This is more than enough to start working on the schedule.
The ballot box is always the best test. Citizens sharing the same sentiment will vote and cast wisely with my generation of people diminishing. Honestly, it does not really affect me, but I will support a vote for change if it gets out of hand. Regardless of party, I think all our citizens would like to vote for someone that genuinely cares for its citizen. We need to convince our surrounding colleagues, friends, nok, and so on, keep on the effect if we are to see change. May be I am naive in thinking, but I always had that believe, perserverance will pay of someday. No denial, it is a long road, but hey, it will happen. May not be the next election, but another decade from now? I think it is possible if we keep up the effort.
I think the govt is doing the right thing. You want a car, we give your more COEs to allow you to own a car. BUT you must know it is going to cost you. You have to pay and pay for the luxury of using a personal private car. You have to pay for the status of showing your friends and neighbours your ability to own a car. Same as having more children, if you can afford it, then go ahead.
The timing is just right because if the govt waits for another two years to implement this, while drawing too near to the General Election year, then people would still be angry with the govt and voters will cast protest votes. The timing is also just right because now the petrol and fuel prices are going up, up and away. Therefore, the ERP gantries and charges should also be going up, up and away. Together, these two-prong attack would made would-be car-owners think very hard before they commit themselves to buying a new/old car.
Praise must be given to LTA’s foresight. May more gantries be put in place in the near future, and may the ERP charges go up even higher, to make sure that they are effective enough to deter (really serve as deterrents) people from owning a car and make use of public transports or BICYCLES!
@Bicycle Lover
>>I think the govt is doing the right thing. You want a car, we give your more COEs to allow you to own a car. BUT you must know it is going to cost you. You have to pay and pay for the luxury of using a personal private car. You have to pay for the status of showing your friends and neighbours your ability to own a car. Same as having more children, if you can afford it, then go ahead.
>>
A bit too naive to think that ERP only affects car owners. It will also increase transport costs of your pizza, food etc. Suppose you work in the CBD and you take MRT to work and you tease your car-driving colleague for being a loser in having to pay the ERP which you did not have to. At lunch time, you found out to your displeasure that your favourite bak chor mee went up in price. Guess what, the pork, the mee and the mushrooms cannot take the MRT like you to come to the mee stall in the CBD from the suppliers outside the CBD. The ingredients have to pass the ERP gantry too in a delivery van in order to get to the stall. The increase delivery cost can be simply passed on to powerless consumers like you and mee, get the simple logic?
@Bicycle Lover,
It’s alright! We all made silly mistakes from time to time. My “taught” became “thought” in my earlier comment. It’s call oversight. It’s the nature of human beings. 事不关己嘛。 It’s a very natural reaction. But we have to admit our mistakes and stand corrected.
In context, the ERP seemed only affecting car owners and the likes. Likewise, when you hear that the GST goes up by a mere 1~2%, seemed perfectly affordable, right? But if you multiply it by n-factors, you will probably change your mindset. Suddenly, you realize, oh, why did my cup of coffee went up by 10cents ~ a 10~15% even 20% increment and so on. For the affluent people, it may not even be a drop of the bucket. However, have a little compassion for the less affluent. It is an extra burden. Why most of our parents kept telling us; save up for rainy days, don’t be spendthrift. Our common reply has always been, it’s okay, it just a few cents more. Our parents will generally have this classic response “小数怕长计“.You see, our parents knew the economic factoring better than we do.
I think most of us here or out there who share the same sentiments are not just thinking for ourselves. It is a duty of every voting citizen to want the government to be more diligent and exhaust all avenues before making decisions that has great impact.
They need more money so that they can get more fat bonuses by the end of the year!
I do concurred with many of you
a) Why can’t Spore MRT stations have more exits. Every station has one place (where you swap your card) to get out. Not to mentioned after you pass the gate, there is also not much exits, esp those in the middle of road. I was wondered if there is fire, all of us would be roasted like pigs inside the station. Ya, don’t tell me got emergency exits. Anybody ever push it open to try and pay $500. First you must wait for the MRT staff to go and push for you in a fire (procedure ma, typical spore). Second the staff is in the control room (ge..tt it, control room) and how is the staff going to get to you if there is a fire between the staff and you. Why fire must start only at one corner only. Did not know govt also control where fire must starts. My suspicioius came from the typical “control” mentality of our govt. Must control first, die your own business,
b) Now to LTA. LTA shows a avg speed comparison in CBD at peak hours with a few major cities. Info is public and from LTA. i did not make it up. Indeed Spore achieved a higher speed than other ciites. But it was like 2 to 4 km/hr faster. Have anyone, perhaps with some intelligence in govt, asked that we turn the whole country upside to install ERP, made everyone pay and only achieve a small improvement over other cities where they just leave it to the natural cause of thing. That is if they do nothing they are slightly slower only. So what kind of ROI is that? Must use ROI since mnisters want to be paid like big corporation.
c) Outside the box, it looks like Govt collects COE$$$, petrol duty tax$$$, ERP $$$, etc and Delgro annd SMRT make money$$$$ and yet transportation system still so much complaints. Only heard such similar stories in third world countries where govt and cronies enrich themselves and people can complaint whatever they want. In biz, it “Be Global but Act Local”. Guess in Spore, it “Be First World but Act like 3rd World” Slogan for Spore Inc where the CEO is the PM and ministers paid big bucks.
To the million dollars ministers and superscale civil servants,
You guys are fired! Ya. FIRED! Imcompetence and negliegence. Living a high life in your IVORY OFFICE BLDG. DRIVING BIG CARS and getting all kinds of perks. FREE PARKING, free vehicle(camry,bmw,benz) and fuel rebates and many more. Wastrels of the nation. Yes. You guys if you are reading my comments!
FROM: YOUR SUFFERING PEOPLE
I know their gameplan, selling cheap COE so that you can afford the car, then kill you with their ERP AND ALL STUPID TAXES! Don’t you get it guys. It is simple as that.
Observer,
you say that “the ballot box is always the best test”.
yes, thats what we are led to believe in a democratic system. But to think the ballot box is the best test in Singapore, is wishful thinking.
we have the uniquely singaporean GRC, as opposed to one-on-one system.
and come on, come election, after all the talk and bitching about the govt, everyone will still vote for PAP.
u think GST or ERP is going to change peoples’ minds about PAP?
in the end, u get some money, upgrading and what not, and all will be forgotten.
Otherwise,
- we’ll be reminded that WP and SDP are crap, or
- we will start killing each other without a strong PAP govt
- we’ll go to war with our neighbours
- without PAP, terrorists or extremist elements will cause a lot of problems here..
Rewards and dire warnings will eventually make Singaporeans vote for PAP, regardless of inflation, rising GST, unemployment rates or ERP.
the garmen solution to road congestion is to discourage the rightful use of your car which you had spent a huge chunk of money to use. the logic is similar to:
buying clothes and expect you to go stark naked
ordering a plate of chicken rice and not eating it
book an overseas holiday and not go
buy a phone and not turn it on most of the time
well, you get the idea.
yeah, the motorists enjoyed being made fools of you think?
if i were the motorists, i will keep driving and cut down on other luxuries like restaurant meals, holidays, shopping to make up for the increase in petrol and any other incidental charges.
so the more charges go up, the more i hit the other businesses with my pocket..:)
somebody jobs or business may go kaput as a result. let them tell the brilliant garmen off then!
Thanks to Mr MAH B T. We have ERPs and ROAD TAX and COE. HE is a brilliant blood sucker and PAP should be eternally grateful to him. I am also eternally grateful to MAH coz he make me realise that this gahmen simply bochap! Only care about revenue generation and nothing else. Thats only LTA we are talking about. Still have HDB to curse and swear, yet again we need to thank MR MAH for his tremendous efforts in making OWN CITIZENS pay market price housing and claim subsidy is given back to us. WOW! REALLY FANTASTIC minister! Eternally Grateful to his piece of CRAP! If all this mayhem is to be traced then we have MR MAH B T to thank for!
FG
Without improving the pubic transport system, it is impossible to get people to give up their cars. The s’pore MRT lags far behind the MTR in HK. The LTA has much to learn from the HK transportation system. It seems that the authorities here are uncomfortable whenever our system is compared with HK’s and refuses to acknowledge its inadequacies. It is thus an irony that, whenever a fare hike is applied, the PTC will cite HK as one of those cities whose transport fare is compared.
It is not about whether we can or cannot afford the car, an efficient public transport system or an incompetent government department like the LTA.
Know this, they are all mostly very efficient.
I fully agree with Bert
“I know their gameplan, selling cheap COE so that you can afford the car, then kill you with their ERP AND ALL STUPID TAXES! Don’t you get it guys. It is simple as that.”
It boils down to this. Each department is a business / cost center entity, talk to the top people, they will tell you sheepishly! They want to keep their high paying jobs.
Government has done a good job here.
As long as this is the case and direction, very little sympathy is thought of even remotely of the people’s social and emotional software.
All the top scholars’ education and psyche are gear towards this end.
They will think of all sorts of policies and tools to get ( suck ) as much as they can for their departments. That is why too the Community Development pays peanuts for to the recipients for their monthly handouts. There is a threshold here! I’m just wondering with the inflation just how many of them are asking for more? Our government can afford to pay more I guess.
We all have jobs, don’t matter if it is high paying or not, but my take is this and looking at a new angle, these government agencies are competing with our companies to take as much of our salaries from us! paying for this and that.
At the end of the day, these blokes know that Singaporean won’t say or do much.
But maybe the time is coming, soon perhaps when we can change ( the system and government ) for ourselves and children’s’ future or something drastic will happen. Hope so not!
what’s the problem? the trick is to keep your monthly expenditure or saving constant.
example: you used to spend $300 on petrol out of your monthly expenditure of $2k. if road charges increase by $50 more, you then cut down on other spending to maintain your expenditure or saving. it’s just simple management of your expenses by transferring the painful decision to the source.
by source we mean to understand the garmen has been known to freely hit the people’s pockets to resolve all kinds of problems. from dealing with political opponents to fixing social economic problems, the solution has often been to pay and pay. well, just transfer the pain back to them. they must realized at the end of the day, everybody suffers in the economic game they are playing with the people. maybe then they’ll think of real solutions instead of taking the easy way out at the expen$e of the people?
Reading about TOC’s transport related article, it reminded me of a feedback i gave to LTA some time ago. It pertains to accidents waiting to happen and since no action has been taken, i like to pen this for readers of TOC- and their safety.
“At the turnright junction with conflicting oncoming vechicles, there is sometime a flash ( 1 or 2 seconds) right turning time ” to flush the junction so to speak” – it is dangerous as the flash time is insufficient to excecute the right turn for a hesitating driver vis a vis the continuous or oncoming greenlight flow of vehicles – i witnessed a collasion between a mercedes turning right and an oncoming taxi at the Holland Road X south? Bouna Vista T junction.”
Drivers beware – as the LTA is not taking out the “flash green”, do drive defensively – I recommend that drivers do not execute the right turn at the flash flushing green time.
Thank you TOC – you make my day!
I’m very much in support of the PAP government’s decision to build more ERP gantries & fee hikes. In fact, the more the merrier so that those who cannot afford to own a vehicle should not own any and should not contribute to any road congestion and compete with those rich Ministers, elite, towkays, with the limited driving space in our roads. Anyway our roads and highways are not built for the peasants. As simple as that.
If you cannot even afford to pay S$1~S$2 for the ERP tolls, do you think you can afford to show off that you are in the class of priveleged.
Please get our of my uncaring face! Bravo to PAP for having the guts to implement such a brilliant scheme to get poor owners out of our limited roads.
@agyee,
I am glad you read between my line of comment as far as “ballot box is always the best test”. You are absolutely right on the point that come voting time, the result is so telling after so much bickering and sulking. So what does that tell you? The mentality of the majority is still maturing in progress (put it a little nicely ~ if you get what I mean). It is not just this issue, I think 90% if not 100% of the issues raised and discussed in TOC (at least the comments are sensible and not based on “BLIND FAITH”) that WE hope to see change will not happen until the general public come to their senses. This “kiasu”, “kiasi”, “bochap attitude”, and “bobian” stigma is very deep rooted. How about our younger genrations of Singaporeans? How do they fair? Take a look at the Human Rights Poll results. Are there only 163 people have access to internet in Singapore? Even if the poll total votes is in the 1,000 mark it is still low. However positive I like to maintain my mindset on the issues that I had partake in commenting, the reality is quite obvious. But, in the spirit of HOPE, we just have to keep trying. If Balloting is not the only way (as it is now), I would really like to know from the wise people, how else can you do it? Yes, I said that before, if we are persistent, our voices will not be gone un-noticed. Perhaps that is true, but that does not really construe into real action by the people who are the key holders. It is a sorry state. That is reality.
You and I lived and worked in Hong Kong. You see the difference in the mentality between Hong Kongers and Singaporeans. I mean even the aunties and uncles here are much more informed and majority are very social and helpful when it comes to adverse situation. You can judge the difference on how the people reacted just based on the recent Sichuan Earthquake. Ya, you can argue that Hong Kong is part of China. If it is so, that just show how shallow thinking we all are. Helping human kind of its own is a fundamental value that we should all have without any instigation. If we do not even have that basic instincts, It says a lot about the up-bringing process. This is just one of the many examples. I believe if you have lived and worked long enough in Hong Kong (no need to mention about the changes of the Chinese people), you can cite more examples and none that I can see our people is able to achieve with the same result.
It is really sad. But we cannot stop to HOPE and DREAM.
Everyone should drive a “dream car” like me. :-) It fears no increases in taxes or ERP charges. It definitely beats inflation too!
Observer,
the most telling anecdotes i have between general singaporeans and general HKers are:
the Singapore system has created a general population that is overly dependent on the govt, whereas in HK, the people depend on themselves and each other to survive.
SARS showed me the difference in reaction to a national crisis, between Singapore and HK.
The most telling, however, was a conversation i had was with a taxi driver. He was talking to me about the economy and China. I was struck by his good english and his awareness of current affairs. He then told me he was formerly an engineer – worked with MNCs and local companies and did very well at one point. But he lost it all in business ventures and gambling. So he now drives a taxi. but his last words showed me his spirit…
“But i have no regrets. I tried my best and live it to the fullest. I’ll survive driving a taxi, and one day, i’ll be back.”
no complaining about the govt doing this or that, or foreign talent (which i am, in his country!).
When they wanted to impose GST but faced rejection by every NGO and business organisation, Henry Tang simply said “3 months into a 9 month public consultation program and everyone protested it. Looks like we shall not impose the GST and we (the Govt) now has to look for other ways to get income.”
i’ll admit the HK govt is not the most efficient in the world, but HK is not exactly in the dumps either.
Sorry for taking the conversation topic away from ERP, guys.
@aygee,
Totally agreed with you. Hong Kong Government and it’s current system has its flaw. There are areas where they could learn a thing or two from Singapore and even China. But they are no shepherds. They can agree to disagree and vice versa. Ya, you can get annoyed sometime seeing people demonstrating for the sake of demonstrating, but that is part and parcel of democracy. There are other areas where improvements are called for. But, one very basic point, the people do have a say even their Governer is appointed not elected.
Dear All Caring Citizens,
It seemed that the recent two comment exchanges between me and aygee deviated from the main article. But hey, if you think deeper, it has every relevance. It’s all about mindset of people (including the key holders). I heard Singaporean ragging to want change in one hand but then again, they turn to our Gov seeking for help in another. How do you remove that “Nanny” stigma and shed your sheep skin if this state of mind persist? We need to prove with action that we are matured enough to do without the nanny.
Hi,
We just like a brid keep in the cage for so many years and become so dependent on our master. I do agree with Observer and Aygee on Hong Kong. Singaporean have to free themself from the cage .
PC, observer, aygee
“We just like a brid keep in the cage for so many years and become so dependent on our master. I do agree with Observer and Aygee on Hong Kong. Singaporean have to free themself from the cage.”
Having stayed in Hong Kong, despite the fact that they only elect half of their legislators directly, it is still much more open and liberal. The Government cannot avoid open public debate and anger. Just look at the fate of former Chief Executive Tung Chee Hwa. He was not popularly elected under universal suffrage and could not be removed through elections BUT he still had to go when 500,000 marched on July 1 2003 demanding his ministers’ head to roll (Regina Ip and Anthony Leung) and he finally had to step down ignominiously in 2005.
And if you look at the Legislative Council debate in Hong Kong, government ministers (known as Secretaries) had to face vigorous grilling from various legislators. You have got the media reporting on various views and issues. In short, in Hong Kong, if you are a top official, you can hardly escape from public scrutiny. The election of Anson Chan, a renegade retired top civil servant as a Legco member proved that a pro-government candidate does not enjoy electoral advantage.
As for Singapore, that’s all for you to find out :)
aygee
“the Singapore system has created a general population that is overly dependent on the govt, whereas in HK, the people depend on themselves and each other to survive.”
But i don’t think the “over-dependence” of Singaporeans is self-induced. If you have a closed political system, the so-called “dependence” is bound to happen.
In Hong Kong, even though it is not even a country, the people feel that their sentiments has a role and influence and those on top cannot defy and ignore ground sentiments freely without facing political consequences. When you feel empowered as a member of society, you have the confidence. (The Secretary of Justice does lose civil law suits filed by private individuals in the HK Court of Final Appeal) When you have the confidence, your society would not be one which is over-dependent on the Govt.
In Hong Kong, the gahmen knows that the people are the king – so the gahmen listens to the people.
In Singapore, the gahmen thinks that they are the king – so the gahmen think that the people should listen to them (they perpetuate this notion by constantly trumpeting how talented and gifted they are) – not the other way round.
And voila, a wonderful national psyche has been created and when problems come, people will naturally look at the gahmen and our dear gahmen has a thick cheek to tell the people not to be too dependent on them.
Just to add on to the point about “whereas in HK, the people depend on themselves and each other to survive”
In HK, though laissez faire is the norm, but the Govt still practices what is known as “positive non-interventionism” meaning that most of the affairs would be left to private individuals BUT where the free market fails, the Govt will step in to address it.
Just compare the medical fees between Hong Kong and Singapore and you will know what i mean. All elderly and schoolchildren enjoy half price on buses and trains throughout the day (not just SMRT’s off-peak hours for the older folks). There is a Social Welfare Department to oversee the social safety net and abuse is minimized because welfare is barely enough for you to meet ends meet and abusers could be jailed if they are found guilty of abusing welfare benefits.
In short, in HK, its a good mix of private initiative and right amount of government role.
sorry to be continuing on this thread of conversation, but…
passerby, you mentioned something that raised a theory in my head.
Could it be that the Singapore government REALISES that we have become too dependent, and thus doing all these things (FT, inflation, no welfare etc) to educate us, the hard way, to be less dependent?
But, while focusing on weaning us off the govt, they forget that they also have to let go on many other things as well – like press freedom, empowerment to the people, giving us the opportunity to challenge poor leadership etc…
they want us to be independent, yet they still want to control us…because they are insecure about their position as leaders.
They dont seem to get the idea that many Singaporeans DONT WANT CHANGE – we just want better leadership, accountability, transparency. I dont want PAP to go, i just want them to be more accountable and responsible. But if you dont give me a choice, you dont empower me (as passerby says), what other option do i have?
hi aygee
“They dont seem to get the idea that many Singaporeans DONT WANT CHANGE – we just want better leadership, accountability, transparency. I dont want PAP to go, i just want them to be more accountable and responsible. But if you dont give me a choice, you dont empower me (as passerby says), what other option do i have?”
That is the real problem here. Economic theory would have told us that only where there is competition, businesses will put in the best to serve the customers. However, if you have a monopolistic firm, it will not put in its best, knowing that it has no danger of being displaced. In fact the attitude is often “Don’t ask too much, buy it or leave it” because the monopoly knows that no matter what, you gotta buy from it anyway.
Guess what? The same goes for politics. No monopolistic entity will not commit suicide by opening up for real competition as long as there is the slightest chance that they will be trounced in real competition.
Hong Kong good,
I think you got it mixed up. Hong Kong people will still look to their Gov for help but the people will also have their voices heard. If you read about their current affairs, the recent HN51 virus issues that may resulting into finally materializing the centralized culling of live poultry and the debate on compensation (have been in tussle for 2 years now); and the recent disclosure issues on appointment of Assistance Secretaries are good examples of interaction. There is no lack of fine examples in the past events already cited in earlier comments by other poster. Just let you have a better idea. The MSM (TV) even host a weekly live talk show program openly discussing sensitive issues that impact the everyday live of the citizens. It’s senseless and immature to put a label who’s king and who’s not. It is just people respecting each others view.
In this aspect, Singapore lack behind the receptiveness of our key holders. And even if there are interaction, how engage are Singaporeans and whether constructive suggestions are being transformed into actions or they maintain their subjective views? Impartially, can you put the blame entirely on the key holders? This is one question that I think some Singaporeans are pondering. You be your judge.
Just take this article alone. Example, if I do not drive (and FYI I don’t drive), it’s so convenient to think that it has little or no impact right? Think again. If the mindset of owning a car is not a necessity but a status quo thing, I can only sigh. But then you have ignored the fact that there are genuine needs for some people. Is this fair? What was the original intend of the COE and ERP (even before ERP exist)? If I remember correctly it was supposedly to curb the automobile population and encourage the general public to utilize more of the public transportation system. Can there be any further improvements made to our public transportation system that might play a role in reducing the ever increasing automobile population? You compare the size of Hong Kong and Singapore, how different are they?
You have got to travel long enough holidays or live in one country to experience the everyday living and the interactions that are going on to really see the great difference.
Observer on June 23rd, 2008 6.17 pm
Agreed and no argument.
Well, who should make the move to fully realise the whole process of engagement – from constructive suggestions (generally from the general public) to policy implementation (generally from the government). It must be from the governement right ? No ?
Hong Kong good,
Logically and ideally speaking. Constructive Suggestions are engagements of both the common citizens and the policy implementers. Yes, there will be claims that there’s this GRC meeting where constiuents can participate and what not. No doubt about this. So the question is how engage are Singaporeans? On the other hand, arguments can follow that Singaporeans are not engage purely out of fear? So, if the fear factor is not removed, engagement may not be fruitful. I think this is the problem area. Agree? Who holds the key to unlock this grid-lock?
This pattern of behavior can be found too in some local or foreign corporate politics. Have you participate in or conducted seminars? If you have, observe and see how interactive are Singaporeans (well, those days when I was conducting seminars, I certainly experience the quiet side of SIngaporeans. I hope htis has change for better). I am not saying there is no interaction, few in between though.
All I can say is that there are no short of engagement in discussions and exchanges of views in the blogsphere (a virtual world). When you transform this to a face to face negagement, the landscape is very different. I think TOC is not unknown to professionals who have access to the internet. I personally find this website try its best effort to present topics for discussion in its original essence. It is through genuine views (however ugly it may be sometimes) exchanges that we see the root of our concerns.
I think majority of us who expressed our concerns want and hope the policy makers to open their doors and hear us out genuinely without any worrying that we might inadvertently infringe the fine prints of the law and all that for expressing our true feelings. Is this too much to ask for?
Until this protective mindset change, I can honestly say that changes will not happen. We can never remove the stigma that other nationalities labeling Singaporeans “Kiasi”, “Kiasu” and what not. It hurts!!!
My sincere apology to TOC and the author of this article for deviating the article’s intended discussion. However, I standby my point that whatever issues that are posted in this blog by varying authors or comments posted by varying concerned citizens, the root of problem is very much related to the mindset of the people for a simple reason, WE are Human Beings. WE should try to embrace our mankind with mutual respects and love without conditioning.
Hi Observer
No doubt your point is valid but let me give you an example to illustrate where i think the problem lies.
Strict and Autocratic Teacher: What does the class think of the question on the board?
Courageous Student A: Sir, i think i know. It is like (student’s answer, maybe or may not be wrong)
Strict and Autocratic Teacher: Stupid, that’s wrong. It is (teacher’s supposedly correct answer)
Courageous Student A: But sir why can’t it be such such such?
Strict and Autocratic Teacher: How dare you challenge me? I know the best for you (proceeds to take the cane and whack Courageous Student A)
Rest of the class: (shock and disbelief)
Strict and Autocratic Teacher: Who wants to answer this question again?
Whole class: (silent)
Strict and Autocratic Teacher: How come nobody? What’s the fear?
Whole class: (still silent)
Strict and Autocratic Teacher: Why are you so passive? How to develop independent thinking?
The above sums up my view what is happening in Singapore. Was the class or the teacher to blame? I leave you to decide.
@passerby
Noted. Thank you for concurring with me. People in my comment context has no status (that includes our key policies maker). It’s the Human mankind. As for your example; I know where you are driving at. Let’s be fair, parents and the likes must share that responsibilities in th eup-bringing process. It’s no easy feat but it is not impossible task. It’s progressive learning. We made mistakes and we have to remind ourselves, WE are only Humans.
Hi all,
Please keep the discussion going, relevant to this article or not. None of us here at TOC are transport experts, and we can only pen our individual thoughts on transport policy. However, in the course of the responses to this piece, we’ve unearthed a treasure trove of ideas, comments, criticisms of the Singaporean transport policy that would have taken months to otherwise collate.
The quality and candour of this debate is far deeper than anything a government think tank will be able to generate. Keep the debate going, this is participative democracy in action.
We need to improve our public transport to make it a better choice, compared to cars.
Here are two observations.
1. Avoid wasteful competition and keep the fare low
I heard a strange announcement by SMRT. They offer a free bus ride from Dhoby Ghaut station to Chinatown on Sundays and Public Holidays.
I seems to be SMRT’s way of diverting passengers from their competitor (ComfortDelgro) which operates the North East Line serving Chinatown.
Why is SMRT so wasteful, in creating unnecessary capacity? It will be better for SMRT to save this expenditure and reduce the train fares for their customers. I hope that the Public Transport Council will disallow SMRT from raising their train fares, if they can afford to waste money.
2. Disembarking the MRT train
The passenger has to disembark the MRT train using the right or left door, depending on the station. Although I am a regular traveller, I have to look out of the windows to see which side has the platform.
It will be useful for the train to display a green light on the door that will open at the next station. This helps the passenger to get ready to use the right door.