The Electric New Paper :
S'porean cars with tinted windows in JB
You won't be booked...for now
SINGAPORE motorists who own cars with tinted windows can now drive
across the Causeway without having to worry about being booked, at
least for now.
By Zaihan Mohd Yusof
08 April 2007
SINGAPORE motorists who own cars with tinted windows can now drive
across the Causeway without having to worry about being booked, at
least for now.
Last month, The New Paper reported that two Singaporeans were
issued summonses for having dark tinted windows. The drivers said
they were unaware they had broken Malaysian transport laws.
Now, the Malaysian Road Transport Department (JPJ) has told The New
Paper that it is not clamping down on such Singapore cars
temporarily, pending further instructions from its
headquarters.
This comes after Malaysian High Commissioner to Singapore Datuk N
Parameswaran appealed to the Malaysian authorities not to take
'unilateral action on tinted glass'.
The stricter Malaysian law requires foreign-registered cars
entering its borders to allow in 75 per cent of light for the front
windscreen. For the side windows and rear windscreen, at least 50
per cent light transmittance is required
In contrast, Singapore's Land Transport Authority (LTA) requires
only a 25 per cent light transmittance for the rear windscreen and
rear passenger windows. For the front windscreen and two front side
windows, there must be at least 70 per cent light
transmittance
If the Malaysian authorities insist on implementing their rules
strictly, Datuk Parameswaran said 'Singapore cars will forever be
wrong in Malaysia'.
'Likewise, we will forever be wrong in Singapore. Our enforcement
agencies must ensure that our borders are secure but at the same
time friendly. We should not give Singaporeans the impression that
we are waiting to catch them (Singaporeans) as soon as they cross
the border,' he said in an interview with The Star.
PUNISHMENT FOR OFFENDERS
According to the JPJ website, anybody who breaks the law on tinted
windows can be fined up to RM500 and jailed up to two weeks.
There are also concerns that the strict rules would result in a
huge drop of tourism if Singapore car owners are afraid to drive to
Malaysia for fear of being booked. Those caught not only have to
pay a fine, they will have to suffer the inconvenience of having to
go through a 30-minute inspection at a JPJ inspection centre.
Said Datuk Parameswaran: 'I have written to the relevant agencies
in Malaysia informing them about these problems, as such action can
hurt tourism and even investment in the Iskandar Development
Region. Until such time, we should avoid taking unilateral action.
It may only trigger Singapore to act likewise against Malaysian
tinted cars.'
Datuk Parameswaran suggested flexibility and standardising the laws
with Singapore and other countries which have land borders with
Malaysia.
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