Two years later, I still live in the same HDB flat, still do not own a car and still do not plan to. Relatives have given up asking me why Mrs Wang and I, two quite successful & established professionals, do not even aspire to move to a condo or own a humble secondhand car (Mrs Wang is a lawyer).
There are a few reasons. One is that a car is largely unnecessary to our lifestyle. Our HDB flat is two minutes away from an MRT station, which is extremely convenient. Also, the nature of our professional backgrounds means that our offices will almost certainly be in the CBD, and it is quicker for us to get to the CBD by train than by car. Furthermore CBD driving has its own problems, including higher parking costs, heavy road traffic and ERP costs.
Another reason why we don't want to own a car is that in Singapore, car ownership just makes you a rather easy victim for the government's Pay-&-Pay policies.
ST June 17, 2008
ERP charges up at 32 CBD gantries from July 7
Five more new gantries coming up along Singapore River
By Maria Almenoar
THE roads are getting pricier from July 7. Five new gantries, forming a cordon along the Singapore River Line, will go live to regulate the evening traffic flow from 6pm to 8pm, bringing the total number of gantries to 65.
In what is seen as the most extensive revision of Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) here since its implementation 10 years ago, another 32 gantries in the Central Business District (CBD), including those around Orchard Road, will also have their charges increased.
Rates are being revised mostly during the evening time slots because speeds have fallen steadily during the home-rush hours.
The Government is going to fix this by doing three things.
The biggest change is that if you pay, you will get to enjoy a smooth flowing ride - which is not always the case now.
Motorists can expect to pay as much as $1 more at existing gantries and $2 at new gantries ....
The above changes are going to cause some loud howls of protest among the public, considering the price of oil nowadays and the inflation situation. Actually, if you had plans to destabilise our society, raising fees at 32 ERP gantries would be a positive first step in the right direction. (P.S That was just my way of saying that the Transport Minister has a very bad sense of timing. But since I do not drive, I shall not comment any further. Car-driving readers may now proceed to the comment section of my blog).
(P.P.S I invite my driver-readers to share some details of their lifestyle (for example, how often they drive, and from where to where) and also how much they spend on car-related expenses. It might be interesting for such readers to compare notes).