Last Updated on 2018-09-21 , 3:54 pm

So, every Singaporean should know what an ERP is. If not, here’s a brief introduction: It’s basically a toll system that works seamlessly by deducting cash from your cashcard electronically, therefore eliminating the delay of having to stop and pay.

Also, it’s so well-maintained that it never breaks down, unlike some other transport system #justsaying

Read Also: Nas Daily Buay Tahan a S’porean’s Complaint & Passively Aggressively Fired Back

Now that the introduction is out of the way, should we look at the interesting facts about this amazing system that has eased traffic for drivers and also caused countless headaches?

Of course, now that distance-based ERP is coming by 2020, we’ll miss this ERP…don’t we? It’s the lesser of the two evils 🙂

1. Singapore is not the only country to use ERP

Some people thought that ERP is uniquely Singaporean; apparently not, my friend. Known as electronic toll collection, it is used in several areas in other countries, primarily congested cities like Singapore, to encourage people to avoid roads that are high in demand during certain periods.

They may look different or work differently (for example, one of them uses smartphone as the “IU” to detect a car passing by), but the idea is the same: drive past a road with an electronic toll collection and beep: you’ll have to pay.

2. It does help to ease congestion…

Contrary to many beliefs that they don’t help, studies and reports have proved otherwise. A road newly installed with an ERP does help to decrease the traffic by 13%, and increase the average speed of that road by 20%. In other words, those hearsay statements of “ERP no difference leh!” aren’t true after all.

3. …but they lead to congestion in other roads

With drivers avoiding the ERP roads, what do they do? Change their route to a non-ERP road. And ta-da: that road would be jam instead. A chicken-and-egg issue indeed, since the main problem itself is mainly the number of cars, not the congested roads!

4. ERP can be pretty damn expensive if you work in CBD or Orchard

Where are most of the ERPs located? You’ve guessed it right: CBD and town area. And over in these areas, the ERPs are peppered almost everywhere. A trip from Woodlands to CBD during peak hours could be a whopping $15.

That might not be a lot, but one has to work twenty days a month and we’ve yet to include the return trip back home. Do the maths and you’ll know why some would rather take public transport if they work in CBD. Did we mention town area, whereby the ERP runs almost for the entire day?

(Article continues below) Xing Xing is a 34-year-old Singaporean lady who decides to meet up with an online friend she found in Facebook. But it turns out that he’s not what he seems to be: Prepare boxes of tissue and watch the saddest Singapore Facebook love story here:

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5. Every single day, almost $400,000 is collected from ERP

That’s the rough figure, but more or less there. In 2009, it was revealed that each year, the collection is at $150,000,000. The gantry that collects the most is at Nicoll Highway, while the one that collects the least is at Upper Boon Keng Road.

Either Singaporeans are rich or Singapore is getting richer.

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