I completely cannot see how the COE revisions have been of ANY help at all. Lets face it, the decision to introduce the horsepower limit for Cat A cars was a direct response to the success premium brands (predominantly BMW, Mercedes and Audi) had with their 1.6 litre models, which typically had 135-140bhp. Well guess what? At the time of the COE revision, Mercedes, Audi and Volvo all had models sold overseas that would still meet all the Cat A requirements. Result? Those brands STILL have models selling well in Cat A, while improved versions of mainstream cars such as the Chevrolet Cruze turbo, Suzuki Swift Sport and Proton Preve all get bumped up into Cat B. So now Cheverolet, Suzuki and Proton models are considered Luxury cars? Only in Singapore... But, an honest suggestion here, so do give me your opinions - Why not greatly increase the standards required to pass the driving test to control the car population here? Increase the standard (and duration) of education, and mandate a much higher competency level to obtain your licence? For example, Finland requires drivers to go through 3 years of driving before they can obtain a full licence, and look how renowned they are for racing... At the same time, introduce mandatory re-testing, say, every 5 years for experienced drivers, and every 2 years for new drivers/senior citizens, because as weve all encountered out there, some drivers completely do not deserve the privilege of operating a potentially deadly 2-tonne rolling missile of steel, glass and plastic. After all, if you dont have a driving licence, you cant drive on the road, plain and simple. This achieves the objective of 1) Massively reducing the number of cars that are actually on the road and 2) Makes the roads much safer. Lets face it, the problem here isnt really about how many cars people BUY, its how many cars they USE. So I dont see whats the problem with letting the wealthy buy multiple cars, since theres only a limited number of drivers in the house to take them out. Alternatively, make cars cheap to buy (or at least price them sensibly; something close to their OMV), and then charge a much higher price for road usage. One reason why drivers right now are so unwillingly to take public transport instead is because they feel compelled to get the maximum value out of their cars after spending so much money on them. No point making such a huge purchase and then let it sit unused at home right? Anyway, make cars cheap to buy and then follow the example set by London, Hong Kong and New York, and make it prohibitively expensive to drive into, and park in the city. We all complain whenever the ERP prices are increased, but really, is $6 on the highways going to stop you from driving in? Its Why not compare it to the £10 Congestion Charge that Londoners have to pay, in addition to the average £42 it costs for daily parking? Road pricing in Singapore right now may be expensive, but its just not punitive enough for to make alternatives seem desirable. Or course, it goes without saying that our public transport system needs to get its act together first, but other than that, the current car ownership system is only good for bringing in money, NOT helping out the common man.
Posted on: Fri, 21 Mar 2014 17:00:04 +0000