-LEON PERERA- In the August sitting of Parliament, I filed a | The Workers’ Party
-LEON PERERA-
In the August sitting of Parliament, I filed a question to the Ministry of Transport questioning the rationale for and impact of higher ERP rates on traffic. The purpose was to better understand whether higher ERP rates being paid by some of my constituents do have an effect on lowering congestion during peak hours, at least in LTA's modelling. The Minister said that the ERP currently applies at 35 timeslots across nine locations, versus 173 timeslots across 29 locations pre-Covid, but did not add much else in the way of details on the relationship between ERP rates and congestion.
Secondly, I wanted to know about the Government's estimation of the impact of higher ERP rates on the cost of living. The Minister did not answer this in detail, but said that congestion would have an impact on the cost of living, for instance, through slower and cancelled trips made by businesses.
In principle, I agree it is important to curb congestion even as we focus on other environmental and economic priorities like going car-lite. For residents living near busy roads, congestion can be an even more frustrating experience than for drivers caught in the congestion. But we also need to get a clearer understanding of our congestion problem and whether current strategies are effective.
For instance, do high ERP rates encourage drivers to use smaller residential roads, resulting in potentially longer journeys with higher emissions of greenhouse gases and fine particulate emissions that impact residents' health? Does the ERP encourage private car drivers to switch to public transport? What is the cumulative impact of ERP charges on lower income motorists such as motorcyclists riding to faraway workplaces like Jurong Island and Changi Airport?
I will continue to raise these issues in future sittings.
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