Oral Reply by Senior Minister of State for Transport Dr Lam Pin Min to Parliamentary Question on Cutting Vehicle Growth Rate to Zero

Mr Saktiandi Supaat asked the Minister for Transport in light of the policy to cut car growth to zero by February 2018

a.     whether the Ministry has considered the impact of this policy on COE prices;

b.     how will this impact transport inflation; 

c.     whether the public transport system and commuting infrastructure are ready to take on more passenger load; 

d.     whether zero growth will be imposed on non-Singapore registered cars on our roads; and 

e.     whether mitigating policies will be explored to mitigate the impact on segments of the population who still need cars as a mode of transportation.

Reply by Senior Minister of State for Transport Dr Lam Pin Min:

1.     We will lower the Vehicle Growth Rate (VGR) for COE Categories A, B, and D from the current 0.25% per annum to 0% with effect from February 2018. We do not expect this to affect the COE quota and therefore COE prices significantly, as the COE quota is largely determined by the number of vehicle de-registrations.

2.     We have invested heavily to build up our public transport system, and will continue to do so. In the last five years, we have expanded our rail network by almost 30% to 230 kilometres. By 2030, 8 in 10 households will be within a 10-minute walk to a train station. We have also expanded the fleet size for the existing MRT lines by close to 50%. Through the Bus Service Enhancement Programme and subsequently the Bus Contracting Model, we would have added 80 new bus routes and 1,000 new buses by the end of this year. There will be less need to own a car. 

3.     We manage the number of foreign registered vehicles via the Vehicle Entry Permit (VEP), which equalises the cost of owning and using a foreign-registered vehicle in Singapore, with that of owning and using a Singapore-registered vehicle.