Activation of Traffic Diversions to Ease Traffic during Oil Spills

Er Dr Lee Bee Wah asked the Minister for Transport (a) what is the procedure to activate traffic diversions to ease traffic jams when there is a major oil spill or accident on a busy road; (b) how long does it take to despatch the Police to activate these diversions; (c) how long does it take to disseminate traffic news to the public to avoid the affected roads; and (d) what is the normal platform used in disseminating this traffic news.

Once a report of a major traffic incident or oil spill is received, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and the Traffic Police will assess its severity. If traffic diversion is needed, the nearest Traffic Police resources will be mobilised. Traffic diversions are implemented swiftly once the Traffic Police arrive on the scene, which is typically within 30 minutes of the report being received. Traffic advisories are immediately disseminated through various radio and online channels, such as the LTA Traffic News radio broadcast, the OneMotoring website, smartphone apps, such as MyTransport.sg and LTA's traffic news Twitter account.