Number of Speeding Cases of Lorries Travelling above 60km/h over Past Five Years and Traffic Police's Rules of Engagement
Ministry of Home AffairsSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns enforcement against speeding lorries, as Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye inquired about the Traffic Police's rules of engagement and recent violation statistics. Minister for Home Affairs K Shanmugam explained that lorries are restricted to 60km/h or 70km/h depending on weight and cargo, with 19,758 violations recorded between 2016 and 2020. Traffic Police patrol officers detected 82% of these cases by stopping drivers on-site, while the remaining 18% were caught via fixed speed enforcement cameras. Minister for Home Affairs K Shanmugam stated that no cases were caught through dashcam footages as they cannot verify the actual speed needed to issue composition fines. Consequently, enforcement relies on verified measurement tools to ensure accuracy when meting out penalties to drivers who exceed the legal speed limits.
Transcript
11 Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye asked the Minister for Home Affairs (a) what are the rules of engagement when the Traffic Police spots a lorry travelling at a speed higher than 60 kilometres per hour (km/hr); (b) how many of such speeding cases have been detected over the past five years; and (c) of these cases, how many are stopped by Traffic Police officers and how many are caught through submissions of dashcam footages.
Mr K Shanmugam: Lorries ferrying workers in the rear deck, as well as those with a maximum laden weight greater than 3,500 kilogrammes, have a vehicle speed limit of 60 km/h; otherwise the speed limit is 70 km/h.
When Traffic Police (TP) officers spot any vehicle, including lorries, travelling in excess of either its vehicle or the road speed limit, they will direct the driver to stop at the side of the road, explain that they have committed a speeding offence and take enforcement action against the driver.
From 2016 to 2020, TP detected a total of 19,758 speeding violations involving Singapore-registered lorries. This includes lorries which were caught travelling at a speed higher than either its vehicle or the road speed limit.
Of these speeding violations involving Singapore-registered lorries, 82% were detected by TP patrol officers and 18% were caught by fixed speed enforcement cameras.
TP is not able to take enforcement action against drivers for speeding solely based on the submission of dashcam footages from other vehicles, as it is not possible to verify the actual speed of the alleged speeding vehicle through such footage. It is necessary to determine the actual speed of the vehicle in order to mete out composition fines and demerit points.