SINGAPORE — Where Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) charges were lowered or removed entirely, traffic speeds fell as a result of heavier traffic, said Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew yesterday at his ministry’s Committee of Supply debate.

This was the case at five out of six 30-minute time belts observed, said Mr Lui, who was responding to a suggestion from Member of Parliament (MP) Seah Kian Peng (Marine Parade GRC) that the Marina Bay ERP cordon not operate on weekends given “lighter traffic”.

Last June, operating hours of the Orchard Road cordon were changed to start at 12.30pm instead of 11am. Traffic speeds fell, particularly for the noon-to-12.30pm belt, dropping from 22.3kmh to 19.9kmh. At the Bugis-Marina Centre cordon, charges were reduced to S$1 from 12.30pm to 2pm. This resulted in traffic speeds dropping to 1 to 2kmh during two of the 30-minute belts, while the third remained only marginally the same.

Mr Lui said the ERP system has helped keep traffic speeds on roads “largely in the optimal range” despite the rise in the number of vehicles, adding: “It is clear that ERP is still needed to manage traffic congestion.”

MP Lee Bee Wah (Nee Soon GRC) had called for removing evening ERP charges entirely to allow families to return home earlier in the evening, but Mr Lui said there are no plans to do so, and the same goes for Saturdays. “Without ERP, motorists as well as bus commuters will encounter more congested roads in the evenings when they go home, and on Saturdays when they go to town,” he said. EUGENE NEUBRONNER