Achi news desk-
Last Updated: March 25, 2024, 9:00 PM IST
The prosecution said that vehicles like the Sundram bus must be fitted with speed limiters to prevent them from exceeding the 60 km per hour limit. (Representative image)
Sundram Retnam who owns SV Bus Transportation Services and usually drives the affected bus at a speed of between 70 km per hour and 75 km per hour, was also fined SGD 500 after he failed to ensure that its speed limiter properly calibrated to prevent the vehicle from speeding.
The owner of an Indian-origin company that provides bus transport services has been sentenced to 13 weeks in prison for his role in a rush that allowed one of his vehicles to exceed the prescribed speed limit, which could affect road safety.
Sundram Retnam, 51, who owns SV Bus Transportation Services and usually drives the affected bus at a speed of between 70 km per hour and 75 km per hour, was also fined SGD 500 after he failed with ensuring that its speed limiter is properly calibrated to prevent the vehicle from speeding.
On March 25, he pleaded guilty to two counts of cheating and also admitted an offense under the Road Traffic (Motor Vehicles, Speed Limiters) Rules. Sundram was the second person involved in the case to be dealt with in court.
Mechanic Tee Wei Chye, 45, who had activated the speed limiter on the bus before its inspections and disabled it after the tests were completed, was sentenced to 21 weeks in prison on March 22 after he pleaded guilty of three counts of cheating. The case involving a third man, Teoh Sio Meng, 51, who was the director and owner of T&L Transit, and a director at RS3 Transport at the time of the offences, is pending.
All three Singaporean men were charged in court in December 2022. The prosecution said vehicles such as the Sundram bus must be fitted with speed limiters to prevent them from exceeding the 60km limit the hour.
Deputy public prosecutors Eric Hu and Darren Sim added: The aim of the speed limit regime is to improve road safety and driving behaviour, and complements other measures intended to reduce deaths and injuries among road users. The prosecution said the three men were involved in a conspiracy to deceive vehicle inspection company Vicom into believing that a working speed limiter was fitted to the bus and that it would be left on the vehicle in order to comply with the law.
An anonymous whistleblower alerted the authorities and the Corrupt Practices Investigation Office then looked into the matter. On March 25, Sundram’s bail was set at SGD 5,000 and he is expected to surrender himself at the State Courts on April 1 to begin serving his sentence.
