In a regulatory move that surprises no one in Singapore, private hire cars will soon be marked with a special decal. From July onwards, Uber and GrabCar drivers will have to display the Land Transport Authority (LTA) issued decals prominently at the top right corner of the front windscreen and top left corner of the rear windscreen.
If for some shady reason a private-hire car does not have the decal affixed, it’ll be charged as an offence under the Road Traffic Act. LTA has also announced that the decals are tamper-evident once affixed, so any attempts to remove or re-attach them can be found out, which then probably translates to another offence. The decals will be checked during regular vehicle inspections, and if it fails, the owner will not be able to renew their road tax. We suppose this makes identifying your GrabCar or Uber easier in the future. But perhaps more importantly, helps with enforcement against unregistered cars offering chauffeured services, or private hire cars picking up passengers by street-hail.
Private-hire cars that registered with the LTA on or before Feb 28 this year can get their decals affixed for free, while those registered after will have to pay $20 to obtain one. Drivers who are affected by this can get one affixed from Apr 17 at VICOM/JIC inspection centres or STA inspection centres. Uber and Grab will also have dedicated affixing centers specially to facilitate private hire cars registered on or before Feb 28. Owners of registered private hire cars will be getting a letter from LTA real soon about the new requirements and processes.
This story originally appeared on Stuff Singapore, bringing you what’s next in the world of tech and gadgets, with a twist.
