SINGAPORE: In a major round-up that started late on Friday night and continued into the early morning hours on Saturday, the Traffic Police carried out an anti-drink driving operation on the Central Expressway (CTE) that resulted in the arrest of a dozen individuals.
Previous to this, the Police had already conducted two such operations on Nov 30 and Dec 31, checking a total of 48 vehicles.
In these operations, six persons between the ages of 28 and 63 failed the breathalyzer tests and were arrested for the offence of drink driving under Section 67(1)(b) of the Road Traffic Act 1961.
Ten people lost their lives due to drink driving from January to October of this year.
There were 142 drunk driving incidents during this period as well, and the Police have continued their efforts to clamp down on the offence. Last year saw 180 drink driving cases, the highest yearly total since 2014.
For the first time in over a decade, the police set up roadblocks on CTE from the evening of Dec 20 to the morning of Dec 21. They stopped 74 motorists, who were then tested for alcohol consumption.
This led to the arrest of 12 people — 11 for drink driving and one for driving without a valid license and insurance coverage. Ten men and one woman between the ages of 31 and 58 were arrested for drink driving, the police said in a Dec 24 statement.
The police said, “While members of the public may be accustomed to seeing roadblocks conducted on arterial roads, roadblocks can also be set up in various other locations and terrains, including expressways.”
The roadblock closed off two lanes before the Jalan Bahagia exit toward Ang Mo Kio, which caused a traffic jam that was over one kilometre long and reportedly lasted between 3:45 am and 5:30 am.
Singaporeans caught in the traffic jam posted photos and videos of the roadblock over social media.
People who are found guilty of drink driving may be slapped with a fine between S$2,000 and S$10,000 or jail time for as long as one year, or both, for a first-time offender under the Road Traffic Act (RTA).
However, those who are repeat offenders face a fine between S$5,000 and S$20,000 and could go to jail for as long as two years.
Additionally, they will be disqualified from holding or obtaining a driver’s licence for at least two years (or at least five years for repeat offenders). /TISG
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