Wednesday, 12 October 2016

The Straits Times

This was an article contribution by Dr Timothy Wong from the Department of Economics at NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, in which he discussed whether Singapore should abandon its red-light camera programme as red-light cameras fall out of favour in many cities around the world. On whether red-light cameras are ineffective, Dr Wong highlighted that the appropriate metric is not the number of collisions at an intersection but the cost of collisions at intersections. He also cited a study by the NUS Department of Civil Engineering which found that red-light cameras in Singapore significantly reduce the vulnerability of motorcyclists at intersections, who are more likely to suffer incapacitating injuries or die in collisions. He opined that Singapore should not abandon the programme and that to placate concerns regarding any surplus revenue from the programme, police could dedicate such funds to other road safety programmes that would further increase traffic safety in the city.

The ‘Ask: NUS Economists’ column is a monthly series by the NUS Department of Economics. Each month, a panel will address a topical issue.

Click here to read the article.