1. The Ministry of Home Affairs (“MHA”) introduced the Road Traffic (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill for First Reading in Parliament today. The Bill amends the Road Traffic Act (“RTA”) to (a) re-calibrate the balance between deterrence and proportionality for RTA offences; and (b) enhance powers to enforce against errant motorists.
Background
2. MHA regularly reviews our laws to ensure that they remain effective. During the last review of RTA offences conducted in 2019, MHA enhanced the criminal penalties for selected offences to strengthen deterrence. In particular, we increased maximum imprisonment terms and fines, introduced minimum sentences and minimum disqualification (“DQ”) periods for offences causing death and grievous hurt, and instituted higher penalties for “repeat offenders”1 and “serious offenders”, i.e. those who drove under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
3. MHA has completed another round of review, and assesses that adjustments are necessary to re-calibrate the balance between deterrence and proportionality. The proposed amendments ensure that relatively less egregious behaviour is not overly penalised, whilst still retaining the powers to heavily penalise egregious offenders. One key amendment involves the removal of mandatory minimum sentences and DQ periods. This will provide the Courts with discretion to mete out lower sentences where the circumstances merit, e.g., for first-time offenders or in cases where other road users were partly responsible for the accident. See
Annex A for an illustration.
4. The review in 2024, however, preserves all of the other 2019 amendments, such as the maximum imprisonment terms and fines, as well as higher penalties for serious offenders. See
Annex B for a comparison of the pre- and post-2019 regime, as well as MHA’s proposed amendments following the 2024 review.
5. Aside from reviewing the penalties for RTA offences, it is equally important to shape driver behaviour upstream, to reduce the risk of accidents occurring in the first place. Key recent measures include mandating the installation of speed limiters in lorries with a maximum laden weight of between 3.5 and 12 tonnes in January 2024, and the activation of the speed enforcement function in red-light cameras since April 2024.
Key Amendments in the Bill
Recalibrate Balance between Deterrence and Proportionality
6. MHA is proposing three amendments to recalibrate the balance between deterrence and proportionality for RTA offences.
7. First, the Bill will give the Courts greater discretion to impose an appropriate sentence, depending on the circumstances of the offence. An example would be an accident where other road users involved had also exhibited irresponsible or risk-taking behaviour. To achieve this:
(a) For first-time offenders, MHA will remove the mandatory minimum sentence and mandatory minimum disqualification (DQ) period. This will apply to offences that currently attract such penalties viz.:
(i) Dangerous driving offences2 causing death or grievous hurt, for which mandatory minimum sentences and DQ periods currently apply; and
(ii) Careless driving offences3 causing death or grievous hurt, for which mandatory minimum DQ periods currently apply.
(b) Consequently, for “repeat offenders”, MHA will lower the mandatory minimum sentences for:
(i) Dangerous driving offences causing death, from four years to two years; and
(ii) Dangerous driving offences causing grievous hurt, from two years to one year.
8. There is no change to the maximum penalties for these offences. Also, the changes at paragraph 7 exclude offenders who were driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol or drugs. In other words, the mandatory minimum penalties, as well as the add-on penalties, will remain unchanged for offences with a DUI element.
9. Second, the Bill will provide the Prosecution the flexibility to prefer the appropriate charge, depending on the circumstances of the offence. This amendment allows the Prosecution to proceed on a “hurt” charge even where “grievous hurt” is factually caused. This enables the Prosecution to take into account the nature of the injury caused, as well as any mitigating circumstances (e.g., whether other road users were partly responsible), when deciding on the appropriate charge to prefer. The amendment also promotes consistency with our other penal provisions – it clarifies that “hurt” has the same meaning in the context of the RTA and the Penal Code.
10. Third, The Bill will adjust how a motorist’s track record will count towards his classification as a “repeat offender” for a current dangerous or careless driving offence, which unlocks enhanced penalties for the offence.
(a) Today, a motorist is considered a “repeat offender” if he has a prior conviction of any one of the following offences: (i) dangerous or careless driving4; (ii) conducting illegal speed trials5; or (iii) speeding.6 If deemed a repeat offender, the motorist attracts significantly heavier penalties (e.g., mandatory minimum sentences in cases where grievous hurt or death is caused).
(b) Specific to his record of speeding offences, we will amend the RTA such that a motorist will only be charged as a “repeat offender” if he satisfies all of the following criteria (see
Annex C for an illustration):
(i) The motorist had at least two prior speeding convictions in which he sped in excess of 40km/h of the road’s speed limit, or the vehicle’s speed limit; and
(ii) At least two of the prior speeding convictions occurred within the past five years preceding the motorist’s current dangerous or careless driving offence.
11. To be clear, this does not affect how the other offences will count towards a motorist’s classification as a “repeat offender”, i.e. a motorist will be charged as a “repeat offender” if he has any prior conviction of dangerous driving, careless driving or conducting illegal speed trials. This will also not affect the Courts’ discretion to impose a higher sentence in cases where a motorist’s speeding record is an aggravating factor for the current dangerous or careless driving offence. For any given case, the Courts can still consider an individual’s speeding antecedent(s) when determining an appropriate sentence.
Enhance Powers to Enforce Against Errant Motorists
12. The Bill proposes four key amendments, amongst others, to remove errant motorists from the roads, and to strengthen enforcement against other road traffic offences.
13. First, it streamlines the commencement date of DQ periods for both the RTA and the Motor Vehicles (Third-Party Risks and Compensation) Act.7 This will ensure consistency and parity across the DQ regimes, and remove irresponsible drivers from the roads in a timely manner, for public safety. Specifically, the Bill will make clear that:
(a) If the offender is imprisoned for any offence, the DQ period will commence from the completion of the sentence.
(b) If the offender has an existing DQ order and is imprisoned for any offence, the DQ order will be suspended during the term of imprisonment, and will resume immediately after the date of release from the sentence.
(c) If the offender does not receive an imprisonment term, the DQ period will commence from the date of conviction.8
14. Second, the Bill will strengthen the Traffic Police (TP)’s immediate suspension powers.
15. Although TP can immediately suspend the driving licence of any motorist under specific circumstances today,
9 under the law currently, the suspension automatically lapses once the motorist is convicted or acquitted by the court. This means that if the motorist appeals, he can resume driving pending the determination of his appeal, since as he has been convicted, and TP’s suspension order automatically lapses upon conviction. The same can happen if the DQ order against the motorist is deferred by the court to start at a later date. Please refer to
Annex D for illustrations.
16. We are proposing amendments to ensure that the offending motorist’s licence remains suspended, until the final decision is made on the sentencing, or until an order of court (e.g. DQ order) has commenced. This will close the above gaps.
17. Third, the Bill will amend the RTA to empower an immigration officer to administer breath tests at the border checkpoints and their vicinity, to detect and take prompt actions against errant drink drivers driving into our checkpoints. This will enable the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority to more holistically discharge their protective security functions at the land and sea checkpoints, which they have taken over from the Police.
18. Fourth, the Bill will amend the RTA to incentivise owners to collect their seized vehicles in a timely manner, and streamline the subsequent disposal process. The RTA currently allows TP to dispose of any vehicle, within one month of its detention, if no owner comes forward to claim it. However, there are vehicles that TP cannot dispose of, as vehicle owners have laid claim to them but delayed collecting them. To close this gap, we will amend the RTA, as follows:
(a) Require a vehicle owner to take delivery of a seized vehicle within a specified period;
(b) TP can recover storage costs from the owner, if the owner fails to collect the seized vehicle within the collection period; and
(c) TP will be able to dispose of a seized vehicle after one month from the expiry of the collection period, similar to the disposal timeline in the Criminal Procedure Code.
Conclusion
19. MHA is committed to improving safety on our roads and protecting all road users. We will continue to review our laws to strike the appropriate balance between deterrence and proportionality. Where offences are committed, we will hold offenders accountable. Those who engage in egregious road behaviour can continue to expect stiff penalties. However, tough laws and robust enforcement alone cannot ensure road safety. All of us must play our part to promote a culture of responsibility and respect on our roads, to ensure safer journeys.
[1] A “repeat offender” refers to an offender who has a previous conviction for irresponsible driving under the RTA, for certain Penal Code offences where the act constituting the offence involves the use of a motor vehicle, for speeding, or for participating in a speed trial.
[2] Dangerous driving is defined in the RTA as driving a motor vehicle on a road recklessly, or at a speed or in a manner which is dangerous to the public, having regard to all the circumstances of the case, including the nature, condition and use of road, and the amount of traffic on the road.
[3] Careless driving is defined in the RTA as driving a motor vehicle on a road without due care and attention; or without reasonable consideration for other persons using the road.
[4] Or an equivalent offence in the Penal Code, such as rash driving.
[5] Illegal speed trials typically involve vehicles racing far above the speed limit and exhibiting other dangerous behaviours, such as swerving in and out of lanes suddenly and without warning. In 2021, MHA raised the maximum imprisonment terms and fines for taking part in or promoting illegal speed trials, to align with those for offences of similar severity, such as dangerous driving endangering life.
[6] For any given speeding offence, TP has the power to levy composition sums and impose demerit points. For more egregious cases such as speeding in excess of 40km/h above the road’s speed limit or the vehicle’s speed limit, the offender is liable to a fine of up to $1,000 and a jail term of up to 3 months. The maximum penalties are doubled for subsequent offences.
[7] Today, for some offences, the commencement date starts from the date of conviction, whereas for others, it starts from the date of release from prison. In some cases, it may not be statutorily specified.
[8] For serious cases (e.g., involving dangerous driving offences under section 64 RTA, or involving serious injury or death to another person), the Traffic Police may immediately suspend the offender’s driving licence until he/she has been sentenced in court, acquitted of the offence, or the order of court has commenced, whichever is later.
[9] Circumstances such as where there was serious injury or death to a person, or serious damage to buildings and structures caused.
Annexes
