Let's give Singaporean drivers a break
2010/01/20
ONE stark difference between driving in Johor Baru and in Petaling Jaya where I come from is the number of Singapore-registered cars on the roads.
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| Police are trying to recover the outstanding fines owed by Singaporean drivers. — Picture by Zain Ahmed |
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| A traffic policeman using a speed scanner along a busy highway. |
It's interesting, therefore, to hear how Malaysians view drivers of Singapore-registered cars.
In the 18 months I have been here, I have heard many people remark about how those who drive Singaporean cars have little, if any, regard for our traffic rules.
There were also remarks about how they exceed the 110kph speed limit on the North-South Expressway because they finally have miles and miles of road to drive on, and they don't mind exceeding the speed limit. And enjoy it they do, or so I am told.
What many people do not seem to realise is not everyone who drives a car with a Singaporean licence plate is actually from the island republic.
It is common knowledge here that foreigners who live and work in Singapore are not allowed to drive foreign-registered vehicles.
So, some of those speed demons driving Singaporean cars could well be Malaysians.
It was reported recently that Johor traffic cops are carrying out a campaign to recover outstanding fines of more than RM100 million (S$41 million) owed by Singaporean drivers for some 350,000 traffic summonses.
State traffic police chief Superintendent T. Raveendran was reported as saying that some of the outstanding summonses date as far back as 1990.
"Some Singaporean motorists owe several thousand ringgit in fines from multiple unpaid tickets," said T. Raveendran.
In late December, roadblocks were set up at a number of locations, including outside the Sultan Iskandar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Complex in Johor Baru and at the Pasir Gudang Immigration Complex.
State traffic police carry out operations to recover unpaid fines several times a year, so the recent campaign will definitely not be the last one.
This is not to say, of course that only drivers of cars with Singaporean registration license plate are guilty of speeding and flouting traffic regulations.
There are many drivers in Johor with licence plates which begin with J, W, B and P, or other letters for that matter, who drive recklessly and without regard for other drivers.
This means we will never know for sure where those annoying drivers, who love to tailgate, come from.
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