Motorists are again being implored to settle outstanding traffic tickets ahead of February 1, 2023 when the new Road Traffic Act and Regulations take effect.
The Government’s end-to-end digitised ticketing system will also be implemented on that date.
“As of the 31st of January, you will not be able to hide from being held accountable. Pay your tickets now,” implored National Security Minister Horace Chang in a statement in the House of Representatives on Tuesday.
“Motorists must be mindful that as of February 1, 2023, traffic enforcement will be efficiently managed by the traffic ticket management system, and rogue motorists will not escape prosecution,” he said.
“All information will be readily available to the police officers, who will be outfitted with either a smart-check application in their vehicles or the hand-held devices. Indisciplined motorists must remember that when they attend court they are at the discretion of the judge,” the minister pointed out.
In December, Cabinet arrived at a decision that if motorists paid off their outstanding traffic tickets by the end of January 2023, demerit points will be expunged upon the implementation of the new Act. This applies to tickets accrued after February 1, 2018.
“Take advantage of this window of opportunity that has been provided by the Government and pay up your outstanding tickets,” Chang said, while informing that in 2022, some 720,000 tickets were issued by the police.
He said that “as the drivers become sensitive to the efficiency and effectiveness of the new [digitised ticketing] system, I expect you will have less road abuse and, therefore, less tickets”.
The system, he said, is intended to increase the efficiency of the Public Safety and Traffic Enforcement Branch (PSTB) officers by ensuring that motorists who break the law receive, with immediacy, the prescribed consequence.
