The unhappiness over ERP 2.0 and how we can do better
ERP 2.0 is here. Why are people up in arms over it and how can we do better in the future?
ERP 2.0 is here. Why are people up in arms over it and how can we do better in the future?
The next iteration of Singapore's vaunted (or loathed) electronic road pricing system (ERP) will come installed on all new vehicles from May 1st.
And according to CNA, 13,000 existing vehicles already have it installed.
All out of love
Last year, my observation that the ERP 2.0 unit is bulky, ugly, and outdated on arrival attracted a fair number of responses.
You can access the comments from my two previous posts here:
But if you're strapped for time, let's just say respondents were either unhappy or neutral. I don't think a single person expressed enthusiasm.
But why? When you think about it, there's some nice features in ERP 2.0:
- Can disable CEPAS for complimentary parking.
- One-touch roadside parking feature*.
- Warns you about speed cameras (!).
- To be rolled out later.
Functionally equivalent
Why the hatred then? I think the main issue is that ERP 2.0 doesn't offer anything new or useful at this point.
According to LTA:
"There are no immediate plans to impose distance-based road pricing. Any form of distance-based road pricing using ERP 2.0 is still several years away."
Here's the perspective of a vehicle owner:
- 2 or 3-hour installation (half-day leave).
- New interface to get used to.
- Stress about how it looks.
- Same capabilities.
In a nutshell, the system is perceived as a solution for the government, not end-users. But of course it is - there has never been any pretence otherwise.
Yet today's savvy users not only expect tech upgrades to be more user-friendly and convenient but to also offer immediate benefits and improvements.
The absence of clear advantages over the existing system hence contributed to the overall dissatisfaction and reluctance to embrace the change.
Doing better
So how could future technology-centric initiatives be done better? Simple: Ensure that users get tangible benefits from it. And make sure the benefits are available at launch.
Or as a commenter noted (I paraphrase): Give a discount for ERP charges for the first year. And suddenly everyone will be rushing to install theirs.
What do you think?
