ELECTRONIC ROAD PRICING

ELECTRONIC ROAD PRICING:

(Increase in rates): 9.

Mr Chiam See Tong asked the Minister for Transport, in view of the recent announcement on the increase in Electronic Road Pricing rates, (a) how much does the Ministry expect to collect in a year; (b) why is the price increase necessary; and (c) what is the money collected to be used for.

The Minister of State for Transport (Mrs Lim Hwee Hua) (for the Minister for Transport): Mr Speaker, Sir, the objective of the Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) system is to keep our roads free-flowing.

Column: 895

It does so by using price to spread traffic to other times and to alternative routes that are not as congested and, in this way helps to optimise the utilisation of our entire road network. To fully realise the benefits of the ERP system, the rates are set such that traffic on our roads and expressways flows smoothly, neither overly congested nor under-utilised, and allowing for maximum traffic to be carried.

As traffic conditions change over time, ERP rates will have to be reviewed and adjusted from time to time. Hence, the LTA carries out reviews of the traffic conditions quarterly, and the ERP rates are adjusted accordingly. Reviews are also conducted during the June and December school holidays when ERP rates are adjusted downwards in recognition of the lower traffic volumes during the school holidays. LTA's recent ERP quarterly review showed that the city-bound CTE speeds have dropped below the threshold of 45 kilometres per hour. Hence, the ERP rates have to be adjusted upwards to bring about the optimal usage of the CTE throughout the day.

As for ERP revenue, Government collected $91 million in FY 2006. The revenue collected goes into the Government's Consolidated Fund, which funds the various Government programmes for the benefit of all Singaporeans.

Mr Chiam See Tong: Sir, at one debate in this House, I pointed out that although the price had increased at the Braddell Road gantry, the congestion was still present. I wonder whether the Government is willing to hold a feasibility study before it increases the fee at a gantry, to ensure that the fee increase will, in fact, solve the problem, which is what is intended.

Mrs Lim Hwee Hua: Sir, allow me to explain how the ERP pricing is done and the whole philosophy behind it. First of

Column: 896

all, let me state

that without the ERP system, the CTE would today be in gridlock. If we were to take the case of the most congested period of the north-bound CTE, for example, for the period from 6.30 pm to 7.30 pm, the traffic speeds have actually improved from, before the implementation of the ERP, about 26 kilometres per hour to 48 kilometres per hour. Secondly, motorists, by and large, consider the entire journey experience in deciding whether to use a particular route. Hence, to determine if the ERP charge at the gantry on the north-bound CTE needs adjustment, we measure the average speed over the distance from the Bukit Timah entry to the Ang Mo Kio Avenue 1 exit. In this case, the existing ERP gantry is somewhere mid-stream between the start and the end of this stretch. It is possible that on parts of this stretch, the speeds may well fall below 45 kilometres per hour from time to time. However, over the entire stretch, the average speeds would be above 45 kilometres per hour.