Stricter Penalties to be Given to Reckless Motorists at Silver and School Zones

If you’ve been driving in Singapore for some time now, you’ll know that there are special places here where you have to drive at a slower speed.

One is the school zones, where drivers have to drive below 40km/h when they see the sign for the speed limit flashing.

The other is the silver zones, which allow the elderly to cross the roads safely and conveniently.

Elderly Pedestrians’ Deaths Is The Majority Of Pedestrian Fatalities

In 2020, Singapore’s road safety situation improved compared to the year before.

However, the elderly also accounted for a disproportionate number of accidents resulting in injuries or deaths.

While the number of elderly pedestrians who died in road traffic accidents decreased to 15 in 2020, it accounted for 83% of the total deaths of pedestrians in traffic accidents in 2020.

Seeing this, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is looking to better protect elderly pedestrians by introducing a heavier penalty.

Stricter Penalties to be Given to Reckless Motorists at Silver and School Zones

Mr Desmond Tan, the Minister of State for Home Affairs, revealed in parliament on Monday that the authorities are now looking into imposing harsher penalties on reckless motorists at silver zones.

Any motorist who commits offences at pedestrian crossings or endangers pedestrian safety at silver zones will face heavier punishments.

Similar measures will also be implemented at school zones to protect school-going children.

MHA is currently reviewing its changes to the penalty framework, Mr Tan says, and details will be announced later in the year.

That wasn’t the only thing mentioned either.

Traffic Fines Can be Paid in Instalments

I’m sure you’ve been there before: you’re slapped with a fine, and you know you deserve it, but you’re not able to pay it off.

Unless you’re a goody-two-shoes, law-abiding driver. If that’s the case, good for you!

Short of running away into Bukit Timah, Aljunied GRC MP Faisal Manap had asked if traffic fines can be paid in instalments for financially-troubled drivers.

Mr Tan said that the authorities have been looking into the matter, having received feedback from motorists over the past year as well.

While there is no resolution yet, he pointed out that there is a process to appeal already in place.

Financially-troubled drivers can make use of the appeal to try and extend their deadline.

Better Protection For Security Officers

If you have the habit of verbally, or even worse, physically abuse security officers, you better kick that habit fast before you get kicked to the curb.

It was said that the Private Security Industry Act will be changed to include new offences such as physical and verbal abuse.

Security guards, unfortunately, find themselves faced with unreasonable “Karens” when working.

Once the amendments are made and set in stone, offenders will find themselves facing even harsh penalties.

These will be even harsher than if they do the same thing to members of the public, Mr Tan said.

Security officers will also be trained to better manage the public, and they might be equipped with body-worn cameras to deter abuse.

More Investigation Officers 

Last, but not least, if you’ve always wanted to join the Singapore Police Force and couldn’t get in due to the limited number of vacancies, rejoice.

Because soon, you might just find more spots opening up.

After a review of the high-profile case of Ms Parti Liyani, the former helper of the Changi Airport Group founding family, it was concluded that the investigation officer had indeed committed several breaches.

No, it wasn’t due to favouritism or an effort to defend the elite.

It turns out that the investigating officer was overworked and under a lot of pressure, says Minister for Home Affairs and Law, Mr Shanmugam.

During the debate, Mr Shanmugam said that they are reviewing the internal processes and systems for the entire Home Team to make it easier for their investigating officers.

On top of that, they are also increasing the number of investigating officers to manage the workload.

In other words, they’re hiring, people.

Freezing Scam Accounts

On a separate note, the police are collaborating with 20 different financial institutes in a project called Project Frontier.

Instead of the usual 14 to 60 days, the police are able to freeze suspected scammers’ bank accounts within a single day.

In other words, make a police report immediately after you realise that you got scammed and who knows, you might just get your money back.

They’re also working with e-commerce platforms to prevent scams and improve verification processes for sellers.

Feature Image: LTA