12 motorists caught during checks on foreign-registered vehicles near Woodlands Checkpoint
SINGAPORE: Twelve motorists driving foreign-registered vehicles were caught for various vehicular offences on Tuesday (Apr 12) following an enforcement blitz near the Woodlands Checkpoint.
Three of them registered excessive noise emissions while one failed to adhere to smoke emission guidelines.
The enforcement operation - jointly carried out by the National Environment Agency (NEA), the Singapore Police Force (SPF) and the Land Transport Authority (LTA) - also caught another eight motorists who failed to comply with technical and regulatory requirements.
This includes the use of improper licence plates.
The latest checks on foreign-registered vehicles come after Singapore and Malaysia fully reopened their land borders earlier this month, allowing fully-vaccinated individuals to travel freely by private transport via the Woodlands and Tuas checkpoints without the need for testing or isolation.
"The enforcement blitz was carried out to remind motorists to adhere to environmental and road safety regulations," the three agencies said in a media release, adding they would continue to conduct regular enforcement and ad-hoc enforcement checks against errant motorists.
Members of the media observed as officers from the three agencies directed motorists driving foreign-registered vehicles to the Marsiling Heavy Vehicle Car Park.
There, lorries went through smoke emission tests while motorcycles were tested with noise meters. Those who exceeded permitted levels were fined on the spot.
The release noted that NEA has also stepped up emissions testing of foreign-registered motorcycles at the checkpoints since Apr 1.
Foreign-registered vehicles entering Singapore must comply with safety and emission requirements, such as Singapore’s exhaust and noise emission standards under the Environmental Protection and Management (Vehicular Emissions) Regulations, said the agencies.
The licence plates on these vehicles must also be properly displayed.
The authorities said that from Apr 6 next year, all foreign-registered motorcycles will also be required to meet emission limits of 4.5 per cent carbon monoxide by volume, as well as 7,800 ppm hydrocarbons (HC) for 2-stroke engines or 2,000 ppm HC for 4-stroke engines.
Foreign-registered vehicles that do not comply with these requirements may be denied entry into Singapore at the land checkpoints or face penalties by the relevant authorities, or both.
"Reducing vehicle exhaust and noise emissions will help to achieve and sustain a clean and healthy living environment in Singapore," said the authorities.
"Foreign motorists entering Singapore with their vehicles are urged to play their part to keep our environment clean and safe."
