ERP rates at three expressways to go up by 50 cents

ELECTRONIC road-pricing rates are going up next week.

When the next round of revisions kicks in on Monday, it will cost as much as $4 per pass for car owners - the highest since ERP was introduced in 1998.

The new rate is a result of a 50-cent increase for use of the Central Expressway (CTE), East Coast Parkway (ECP) and Pan-Island Expressway (PIE).

For car drivers using the PIE slip road into the CTE between 8.30am and 9am, the 50-cent hike takes the charge up to $4. For drivers of very heavy goods vehicles, this levy is $8.

The new $4 charge is raising eyebrows.

'I foresee 40 per cent of my customers will not take that route,' ventured 51-year-old cabby S.H. Ngiam. 'They will bypass that and cause bottlenecks elsewhere.'

Car drivers passing the CTE gantry north of Braddell Road towards the city will pay $2 between 7.30am and 9am - up from $1.50.

Those passing the ECP Fort Road gantry will pay $1.50 between 7.30am and 8am; $2.50 between 8.30am and 9am and $1 between 9am and 9.30am - up from $1, $2 and 50 cents, respectively.

And on the PIE slip road into the CTE between 7.30am and 8.30am, drivers will pay $3 - from $2.50 now.

Charges at all other gantries will remain unchanged.

Transport researcher Paul Barter described the $4 rate as 'kind of alarming', but noted that ERP rates changed according to traffic patterns.

The assistant professor at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy predicted that the next generation of ERP might 'spread the charges around' to more roads to avoid sharp pricing at isolated gantries.

He also envisaged distance-based charging, in which motorists pay according to the length of the journey rather than the current flat rate.

One way to make this palatable, he said, was for ERP revenue to be used more directly to improve public transport in congested corridors.

The Land Transport Authority reviews ERP rates quarterly to 'achieve optimal traffic flow' - defined as speeds of 45kmh to 65kmh for expressways, and 20kmh to 30kmh for main roads.

Rates for some gantries were reduced by 50 cents during the last review, in November last year.

The next review will be in May.

christan@sph.com.sg