We refer to Mr Ho San Cheow’s letter “A problem that will stick around, even with anti-stick paint” (TODAY, 9 Nov).

LTA agrees with Mr Ho that enforcement action should be taken against any offender who pastes illegal advertisement on our street infrastructure.  In addition to our regular enforcement checks, we also follow-up on reports we receive from the public. Offenders may be fined $300 for the first offence and $400 for repeat offences. If prosecuted in court, they may be fined up to $2,000.

Besides regular enforcement, we have also been proactive in tackling illegal advertisements on our street infrastructure. Since 2009, we have applied anti-stick paint at areas with a high occurrence of illegal advertisement. We have also provided low cost advertising boards at areas with heavy pedestrian traffic, so advertisers have a proper avenue to put up their advertisements or notices, instead of pasting their advertisements on our street infrastructure.

With all of these measures in place, we see the problem improving in terms of the number of fines meted out. From Jan to Sept 2013, we issued 248 fines compared to 454 in 2012 and 674 fines and in 2011.

We thank Mr Ho for his feedback.

Helen Lim (Ms)
Director, Media Relations
Land Transport Authority