Chee Hong Tat defends ERP2.0 OBU design as "necessary trade-off"

SINGAPORE: During Wednesday's (8 May) Parliamentary session, Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat defended the new On-Board Unit (OBU) design for the Electronic Road Pricing (ERP 2.0) system, addressing concerns raised by MPs and the public.

Responding to concerns over the bulky three-piece design for cars, Minister Chee clarified the rationale behind it, highlighting temperature concerns as previously explained by the Land Transport Authority (LTA).

PAP MP Lim Wee Kiak asked whether the Ministry of Transport (MOT) could refine the OBU design based on user feedback and explore using smaller motorcycle OBUs for cars.

Minister Chee responded by explaining the "physics" behind temperature variations in car interiors, emphasizing that footwells experience significantly lower temperatures compared to dashboards on sunny days.

He elaborated that while motorcycle OBUs are exposed to ambient temperatures, car footwells can reach up to 38 to 39 degrees Celsius, and dashboards up to 50 to 52 degrees Celsius, posing a risk of overheating for a single-piece OBU.

“With this kind of temperature, if you were to put a single-piece OBU, which means the antenna, the display, and the processing unit all on the dashboard, there is a risk that it could overheat, and then it will affect the functionality of this unit,” he said.

While a cooling fan could potentially be integrated into the OBU's design, this would inevitably lead to a significant increase in the system's overall bulkiness, he said.

“I don't think motorists will want a very big and bulky one-piece unit on their dashboard. It would not be the right design,” he added.

Earlier, the Singaporean community mocked LTA for what they perceived as "poor excuse" for defending the bulky design, highlighting that the previous single-piece IU in ERP 1.0 encountered no heating issues and was considered notably more convenient.

Many have voiced their frustration over the inconvenience caused by the new OBU design for cars.

'Trade-off' for flexibility to install processing unit

Addressing concerns regarding the placement of the OBU processing unit, Minister Chee highlighted that during the initial phase of installation, the LTA limited placement to the passenger side.

However, in response to feedback from early adopters, LTA has now extended the option for vehicle owners to install the processing unit on the driver side, contingent upon technical feasibility.

Minister Chee acknowledged that offering more choices could potentially increase complexity and installation time for workshops.

"However, we think the trade-off is necessary, to allow vehicle owners to have the flexibility to customise their preferred options, and not have a “one-size fits all” approach."

The processing unit securely stores payment cards, such as the NETS FlashPay card, NETS Motoring Card, and EZ-Link Motoring Card, which are used by drivers to pay for electronic road pricing and parking charges.

Additionally, Minister Chee noted that early adopters who initially installed their processing unit on the passenger side have the option to switch it to the driver's side at no additional cost.

Minister Chee dismisses smartphone integration for ERP purposes, citing limitation

In a supplementary question, Mr Gerald Giam, Workers' Party MP for Aljunied GRC suggested that utilizing smartphones instead of physical OBUs could streamline installation efforts, reduce hardware costs, and alleviate long-term maintenance expenses.

As ERP 2.0 will provide the option for distance-based charging in future, Mr Giam asked whether the government had considered the significant cost impact that distance-based charging would have on professional drivers such as taxi drivers, private hire drivers, delivery drivers, and riders.

In response, Minister Chee acknowledged the feasibility of using smartphones for accessing ERP information and confirmed that they would be permitted as an option.

However, he stressed that smartphones were not suitable for ERP purposes due to security concerns and data transmission limitations.

"The OBU is designed to transmit the information one way. whereas a phone you would have two-way transmission."

"Depending on your phone... and the software that you and the apps that you install, I don't think you can be assured at the same level of data security and systems security, including against tempering."

Regarding distance-based charging, Minister Chee clarified that while it was under consideration, it was not a definite decision.

He emphasized the importance of a thorough review due to the varying impacts on different stakeholders.

"I urged Mr Giam not to overstate the point. What ERP 2.0 gives us is the option to do this in space if we wish to do so and in the process of doing that certainly we need to consider the impact on different groups of users, and overall what is the benefit to society."

Mr Louis Chua, WP MP for Sengkang GRC then sought clarification from the Minister regarding whether the new OBU design meets the Automotive Electronics Council's (AEC) AECQ 100 requirements for reliable operations in Singapore's climate.

In response, Minister Chee assured that LTA conducted a series of tests to ensure the OBU's functionality in Singapore's weather conditions.

These tests considered factors such as temperature and safety aspects, including crash tests to ensure that the OBU would not pose a safety risk to motorists and passengers if installed correctly.

"but what we need to continue to do, is to work with our partners and with stakeholders including motorists, mechanics, service ambassadors to continue to find ways in which we can improve the user experience, and allow more value to be delivered to motorists with these capabilities of the ERP 2.0 system."

He expressed openness to suggestions for maximizing the value of ERP 2.0 and implementing additional functionalities based on feedback from stakeholders.