Do you own an OPC? Have you ever griped about the idiosyncrasies of owning an OPC? (eg. Not being able to take your ride out on Saturdays till after 3pm) Well the government or rather the LTA have on this rare occasion heeded our calls for an overhaul of the Off Peak Car scheme. But before we delve into what LTA has revised, let us recap on what the current OPC scheme offers before the changes.
Current OPC scheme
Started in 1994 to replace the Weekend Car scheme, the OPC scheme gave existing car owners a chance to enjoy reduced registration fees and tax rebates. Of course with the tax rebates came the catch, which was reduced usage. Owners were limited to driving only during off peak hours which was from 7pm – 7am on weekdays and 3pm onwards on Saturdays till 7am the following Monday.
An attractive benefit of the OPC scheme was the upfront rebate of the vehicle. Owners are entitled to a rebate of up to $17,000 based on the COE Quota Premium and Additional Registration Fee. Road tax was also reduced to as low as $50.
The OPC scheme was especially attractive to motorists who were on a budget or didn’t need the car often enough to justify a full-time car.
But the scheme wasn’t entirely perfect. Motorists who needed to use the car during peak hours were required to purchase a $20 license and display it prominently on the windscreen.
Current OPC scheme
Started in 1994 to replace the Weekend Car scheme, the OPC scheme gave existing car owners a chance to enjoy reduced registration fees and tax rebates. Of course with the tax rebates came the catch, which was reduced usage. Owners were limited to driving only during off peak hours which was from 7pm – 7am on weekdays and 3pm onwards on Saturdays till 7am the following Monday.
An attractive benefit of the OPC scheme was the upfront rebate of the vehicle. Owners are entitled to a rebate of up to $17,000 based on the COE Quota Premium and Additional Registration Fee. Road tax was also reduced to as low as $50.
The OPC scheme was especially attractive to motorists who were on a budget or didn’t need the car often enough to justify a full-time car.
But the scheme wasn’t entirely perfect. Motorists who needed to use the car during peak hours were required to purchase a $20 license and display it prominently on the windscreen.
In an emergency, owners risked being punished with heavy penalties if they drove without the day license.
New OPC scheme and what it means to you
In a bid to entice more motorists onto the red-plated side, LTA recently announced significant changes to the Off Peak Car scheme. It is the single biggest revamp of the scheme since it was started in 1994. Following Transport Minister, Raymond Lim’s announcement in February 2009 that LTA would make the OPC scheme more convenient and attractive to car owners.
From 23rd November 2009, electronic day licenses will replace the paper supplementary licenses for driving during peak periods, allowing more convenience for motorists by having them purchase their licenses online at LTA’s ONE.MOTORING portal, AXS machines or through the mobile-SMS service.
So coupled with the much improved flexibility in purchasing day licenses, motorists have also been given up to 2359hrs the next day to purchase their license after using their OPCs during the restricted hours, allowing the use of their cars in an emergency without getting penalised for it.
On top of that LTA’s enforcement officers will no longer stop OPC owners to check their day licenses. Instead they will take down the OPC’s license plate and verify the purchase of the day license for the specific time that the OPC car was spotted on the road.
New OPC scheme and what it means to you
In a bid to entice more motorists onto the red-plated side, LTA recently announced significant changes to the Off Peak Car scheme. It is the single biggest revamp of the scheme since it was started in 1994. Following Transport Minister, Raymond Lim’s announcement in February 2009 that LTA would make the OPC scheme more convenient and attractive to car owners.
From 23rd November 2009, electronic day licenses will replace the paper supplementary licenses for driving during peak periods, allowing more convenience for motorists by having them purchase their licenses online at LTA’s ONE.MOTORING portal, AXS machines or through the mobile-SMS service.
So coupled with the much improved flexibility in purchasing day licenses, motorists have also been given up to 2359hrs the next day to purchase their license after using their OPCs during the restricted hours, allowing the use of their cars in an emergency without getting penalised for it.
On top of that LTA’s enforcement officers will no longer stop OPC owners to check their day licenses. Instead they will take down the OPC’s license plate and verify the purchase of the day license for the specific time that the OPC car was spotted on the road.
Also from January 2010, OPC owners will be allowed full usage of their cars on Saturdays and eves of five public holidays (namely New Year, Lunar New Year, Hari Raya Puasa, Deepavali and Christmas) without the need to purchase a day license.
But what one hand giveth, the other taketh away. In exchange for this increased usage, the annual road tax discount will be reduced from $800 to $500 while the minimum road tax amount will also be increased from $50 to $70. LTA says that with the new timings of usage, it is necessary to adjust the discounts accordingly because the concessions given previously were calculated taking into account the restricted usage on Saturdays and eves of Public Holidays.
If a normal car owner intends to register his car as an OPC, he no longer needs to wait till his car is deregistered before collecting his tax rebates. Owners who convert their normal cars to OPC will enjoy rebates of up to $1,100 every six months of registering as an OPC until the car is 10 years old. But I believe that LTA will come up with a formula to stagger the repayment according to the car’s Open Market Value or in accordance with the value of the car.
"Although I feel that more could be done, for example half day licenses could be implemented, I’m quite happy with the changes the government has put in place for next year. This will easily translate to me having more time with my car and will not find me counting down to 3pm on Saturdays anymore” said the owner of a three year old OPC car we interviewed.
But what one hand giveth, the other taketh away. In exchange for this increased usage, the annual road tax discount will be reduced from $800 to $500 while the minimum road tax amount will also be increased from $50 to $70. LTA says that with the new timings of usage, it is necessary to adjust the discounts accordingly because the concessions given previously were calculated taking into account the restricted usage on Saturdays and eves of Public Holidays.
If a normal car owner intends to register his car as an OPC, he no longer needs to wait till his car is deregistered before collecting his tax rebates. Owners who convert their normal cars to OPC will enjoy rebates of up to $1,100 every six months of registering as an OPC until the car is 10 years old. But I believe that LTA will come up with a formula to stagger the repayment according to the car’s Open Market Value or in accordance with the value of the car.
"Although I feel that more could be done, for example half day licenses could be implemented, I’m quite happy with the changes the government has put in place for next year. This will easily translate to me having more time with my car and will not find me counting down to 3pm on Saturdays anymore” said the owner of a three year old OPC car we interviewed.
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He also mentioned that “with all the ERP (Electronic Road Pricing) gantries up and with the changes to the OPC scheme made, I’ll expect more people to take up an OPC ownership in the near future.”
Whether the new OPC scheme will be a better alternative to motorists come 2010 remains to be seen. But with the positive sentiments spreading in the motoring community of the willingness in the government’s stance towards the scheme, some are hopeful that this will be the first of many opportunities the government will use to address to make driving in Singapore more of a joyous experience rather than a burdensome one.
