After remaining unpriced for more than six years, Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) will be reactivated in the Orchard area from next Monday (7 Sept), the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said.
This was after traffic speeds have remained “below optimal levels”, according to an LTA news release on Monday (31 Aug).
Source: Google Maps
The new charges will take effect on weekdays from 11am to 7pm around the Orchard Cordon, i.e. the roads around and leading to Orchard Road.
During that period, motorists will pay S$1 per Passenger Car Unit (PCU) at 11 locations:
Source: Land Transport Authority – We Keep Your World Moving on Facebook
ERP at the Orchard area has been unpriced since the start of the Covid-19 ‘Circuit Breaker’ in April 2020.
LTA has been closely monitoring traffic conditions within the precinct and found that congestion has persisted.
Traffic speeds have also remained below optimal levels since October 2025, LTA said.
In March, LTA had mentioned that speeds in Orchard were persistently lower than the optimal speed range — defined by the Ministry of Transport as from 20 km/h to 30 km/h for arterial roads.
It had also warned that it was considering reinstating ERP operations for the Orchard area if the congestion deteriorated further.
Source: Google Maps
As for Saturdays, traffic speeds in the Orchard area have similarly persistently remained below optimal levels since October 2025, LTA said.
Thus, it will continue to monitor the situation to assess whether ERP will also be reactivated on Saturdays next quarter.
As Orchard is a shopping district, the ERP rates here have been set separately from those for the other parts of the Central Business District since October 2005.
LTA also noted that heavy traffic persists across stretches of the Central Expressway (CTE) for a longer time on weekday mornings.
This lasts till the late morning, it said, singling out the CTE stretch in the direction of the Ayer Rajah Expressway (AYE) before the Braddell Road exit, where speeds have “persistently been lower than optimal”.
If this road congestion persists, LTA will consider extending the operating hours of the ERP gantries there.
LTA encouraged motorists to plan their journeys and consider alternative routes, adding that ERP rates for the other previously announced timeslots and gantries will not be changed.
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Featured image adapted from Google Maps.