Media Factsheet: First Reading of Land Transport and Related Matters (No. 2) Bill

1.          The Ministry of Transport (MOT) introduced the Land Transport and Related Matters (No. 2) Bill (the “Bill”) for first reading in Parliament on 8 September 2026. The Bill proposes legislative amendments to the Active Mobility Act 2017, Electric Vehicles Charging Act 2022, Road Traffic Act 1961, and Small Motorised Vehicles (Safety) Act 2020.

2.          The new legislative provisions are intended to empower the Land Transport Authority (LTA) to further strengthen controls against deregistered vehicles and expand the scope of existing active mobility regulations. The Bill will also allow us to streamline processes, facilitate industry innovation for EV charging, and enhance safety for electric vehicle (EV) charging, and facilitate the continued safe deployment of autonomous vehicles (AVs) in Singapore.

Further Strengthen Controls against Deregistered Vehicles

3.          The use of deregistered vehicles is illegal and poses serious risks to road safety, as these vehicles do not have valid insurance and are not roadworthy. To further strengthen controls over the disposal of deregistered vehicles so they do not end up on our roads, the Bill will introduce the following key measures:

a.          Implement the Authorised Exporter Scheme, which requires deregistered vehicles to be exported through LTA-Authorised Exporters;

b.          Shorten the grace period for owners of deregistered vehicles to fulfil the disposal requirements from 1 month to 14 days;

c.          Ensure offenders remain liable for prosecution for as long as they fail to fulfil the respective disposal requirements;

d.          Empower the Government to prevent new/used vehicles from being registered by or transferred to high-risk individuals who are at risk of failing to dispose of the vehicles when they are deregistered;

e.          Criminalise the sale or supply of deregistered vehicles with the knowledge that, or reckless as to whether, the vehicle will be kept or used unlawfully on our roads.

4.          The Government takes a strong stance against any persons using, keeping, buying or selling of deregistered vehicles for unlawful purposes. Vehicle owners must ensure that deregistered vehicles are disposed of promptly and in accordance with LTA’s requirements. Firm enforcement action will be taken against offenders who fail to comply with the respective requirements. More details on the Bill amendments to further strengthen controls against deregistered vehicles can be found in the press release jointly issued on 8 Sep 2026 by MOT, LTA and the Singapore Police Force (SPF) titled “Further Strengthening of Singapore’s Regulatory and Enforcement Efforts against Deregistered Vehicles”.

Safer Active Mobility Devices

5.          In recent years, online channels have become an increasingly common means of advertising and selling active mobility devices and their batteries. The use of batteries that are not compatible with the devices in which they are fitted may also pose fire safety concerns. These developments underscore the need to strengthen safeguards for online sales and battery compatibility.   

6.          With this Bill, we will extend the powers and restrictions imposed on physical retail premises; to online sales and advertising platforms. Specifically:

a.          Online sellers of active mobility devices must display warning notices on the device and usage rules; and

b.          Online sellers cannot advertise and sell non-compliant active mobility devices.

7.          To protect consumers from unknowingly purchasing non-compliant devices, the Bill will prohibit false or misleading representations about the compliance of a device or its components and advertising for illegal modification services.

8.          To reduce the fire risks arising from batteries^[1] in active mobility devices, the Bill will introduce battery safety rules:

a.          Sellers of mobility device batteries must display specification notices with details of the battery (e.g., compatible device models, voltage and capacity);

b.          It will be an offence for sellers to advertise or sell a non-compatible battery for use in a PMD, PAB, or mobility vehicle; and

c.          It will be an offence to fit or use a non-compatible battery in a PMD, PAB, or mobility vehicle.

9.          To further deter illegal import of non-compliant PABs and motorised PMDs, the Bill will increase penalties in the Small Motorised Vehicles (Safety) Act. The maximum penalty for an individual will be increased from a fine of S$5,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or both to a fine of up to S$10,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or both. For non-individuals, the maximum fine will be increased from S$10,000 to S$40,000. Penalties are doubled for repeat offenders. This aligns with that of similar offences under the Active Mobility Act for illegal modification and sale of non-compliant devices.

Other Bill Provisions 

10.          Other amendments that are part of the Bill include: 

(a)   Easing Inspection Requirements and Strengthening Safety for EV Charging

The Bill removes the mandatory two-yearly periodic inspection requirement for landed home EV chargers, reducing the compliance burden. As a safeguard, LTA retains the power to require ad hoc inspections where safety concerns arise. The Bill also enhances safety by allowing LTA to presume that an EV charger is in use when it is connected to an EV or EV battery, facilitating enforcement against suspected unlawful or improper charging.

(b)  Regulatory Sandboxes for Autonomous Vehicles (AV)

The Bill extends the existing regulatory sandbox under the Road Traffic Act for AV deployments on roads to 31 December 2028. This is to ensure that ongoing AV deployments can continue undisrupted until a more holistic legislation is implemented. Modelling after this existing sandbox, the Bill further introduces a regulatory sandbox under the Active Mobility Act to facilitate AV deployments on public paths, for an initial five-year period, until 30 September 2031. This new sandbox will allow for the controlled testing and deployment of autonomous mobility solutions such as robosweepers, enabling the industry to gain operational experience and the Government to refine the regulatory framework to support the safe and progressive scaling-up of such deployments.

(c)   Strengthening Enforcement Against Illegal Point-to-Point Transport Services

The Bill introduces strengthened enforcement powers to deal with the provision of illegal point-to-point transport (P2P) services. These enhanced powers will enable authorities to act more decisively against operators and individuals who offer unlicensed ride-hailing or taxi services. This protects the safety of passengers and the livelihood of drivers of legitimate operators in the regulated P2P market.

Even as we clamp down on the provision of illegal P2P services, we will ensure there are viable alternatives for commuters. Under the enhanced Cross-Border Taxi Scheme, the quota was increased from 200 taxis to 300 taxis since 4 May 2026. We are looking to further increase the quota to 500 taxis from each country to better meet cross-border travel demand.

While enforcement is currently focused on illegal operators and drivers, commuters should note that they may also be penalised for using such illegal services in future.

More immediately, commuters should be aware that unlicensed vehicles lack valid insurance coverage, which can have serious consequences for commuters in the event of an accident.

11.          Parliament will debate on the Bill at the Second Reading slated for October 2026.

^[1] The rules will apply to lithium-ion batteries, which are associated with active mobility device fires and thermal runaway incidents, and exclude lead-acid batteries which carry lower fire risk.