From Sept 1, the on-board units (OBUs) fitted in vehicles as part of the next-generation Electronic Road Pricing (ERP 2.0) system can be used to pay missed road toll charges.
The feature will be available for motorists whose vehicles are fitted with the OBU that includes the touchscreen display. The Land Transport Authority (LTA) announced the update in a Facebook post on Aug 27.
When there is an outstanding ERP charge, an icon will appear on the home screen of the OBU display.
Payment can then be made directly by pressing the button on the touchscreen display, but only when the vehicle is stationary. The amount will be deducted from the stored value card inserted in the OBU.
Motorists have five days to make payment to avoid a $10 administrative charge. The grace period has been in place since Oct 1, 2024. LTA said the grace period is possible because the back-end processing costs to handle missed payments have been lowered with the implementation of ERP 2.0. There was no such possible waiver before October 2024.
When the grace period was introduced, LTA also launched a text notification of failure to pay ERP charge to the mobile number of the registered owner of the vehicle. If no payment is made within the five-day period, a letter will be sent and the administrative charge will apply.
If payment has been made at AXS stations or online, it will take a day before it is reflected on the OBU.
In response to The Straits Times, an LTA spokesperson said that since October 2024, there have been about 15,400 cases a month – or over 60 per cent – of vehicle owners who missed their ERP payments completing them within the grace period.
Previously, it was announced that the ability to handle missed ERP payments using the OBU would be introduced by mid-2025. When asked about the delay, LTA said that additional testing of the function was done with a small group of pilot users before it was rolled out to ensure that the system was ready.
The LTA has introduced new features to the vehicle OBU since installation began in November 2023. These include allowing drivers to temporarily suspend the card reader function when they exit carparks with complimentary parking coupons, displaying real-time traffic information, including road closures for major events, and showing the availability of parking spaces in major buildings.
Currently, motorists who opt not to have the touchscreen display are still able to get information like traffic alerts on the ERP 2.0 mobile apps. Other features to be introduced later on the OBU include paying for usage licences like those of off-peak cars, tolls at Woodlands and Tuas checkpoints, and roadside parking. No details have been given for these features.
LTA said around 700,000 vehicles have been fitted with the OBU to date. As at the end of July, there were 1.01 million vehicles in Singapore.
LTA urged motorists who have not installed the OBUs to do so. It has said it expects the exercise to be completed by 2026.
Note: This article was written by Lee Nian Tjoe and first appeared in The Straits Times on 27 August 2025.
Source: The Straits Times