With a new phase of autonomous vehicle (AV) community tests launched in Punggol, residents will soon be able to enjoy convenient travel while staying connected to nearby areas. Operated by Grab Singapore in partnership with WeRide, the current autonomous fleet consists of 11 AVs — 10 that can seat five passengers each and one that can accommodate up to eight passengers. It will serve two of the three designated AV shuttle routes in Punggol, helping residents reach key amenities such as local clinics, markets, eateries, as well as MRT stations and bus interchanges. The media were invited to experience the AVs on Monday (Jan 12), which toured the first route covering areas such as Matilda Court, Punggol Clover, Punggol Plaza and Oasis Terraces.Speaking to the reporters, Grab Singapore head of strategic projects Dennis Wong said that AVs are an important feature of future transportation.

The Wang Fuk Court deadly blaze is a grim reminder that Singapore cannot be complacent about fire safety, with early observations from Hong Kong's ongoing investigations already being studied by the authorities here, said Minister of State for Home Affairs Goh Pei Ming. Goh, who is also the Minister of State for Social and Family Development, was responding to questions by Members of Parliament on Monday (Jan 12), in relation to measures taken by Singapore to prevent a similar tragedy. "Recent tragic events remind us that we cannot afford to be complacent about fire safety. The Wang Fuk Court fire in Hong Kong last November is a grim example. 

Revenue from tobacco duties in the three-year period between 2022 and 2024 reached a total of $3.24 billion. The update was given on Monday (Jan 12) by Senior Minister of State for Finance Jeffrey Siow in a written response to a parliamentary question by MP Lee Hui Ying (Nee Soon GRC). Lee has asked whether there has been an annual tax collected on tobacco product sales over the last three years. She also asked what the rate of increase in such revenue was over the said period. Referring to data published on the Singapore Customs' website, Siow, who is also the Acting Minister for Transport, said that the revenue collected from tobacco duties was $1.11 billion in 2022, $1.02 billion in 2023, and $1.11 billion in 2024. Singapore announced an increase in exercise duties for tobacco products during Budget 2023.

Amendments to four laws have been proposed by the Government to improve active mobility device and vehicle safety, as well as enhance penalties to strengthen deterrence and improve path and road safety. Among the proposed amendments introduced in Parliament on Monday (Jan 12) are increased penalties for speed limiter offences and new rules for active mobility devices (AMD) such as personal mobility aids (PMA) and mobility scooters. The Ministry of Home Affairs and the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said in a joint statement that the Land Transport and Related Matters Bill will cover proposed amendments to the Active Mobility Act 2017, the Small Motorised Vehicles (Safety) Act 2020, the Road Traffic Act 1961 and related Acts, and the Land Transport Authority of Singapore Act 1995. "The new legislative provisions are intended to empower the LTA to improve path, active mobility device and vehicle safety, as well as to transition to the Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) 2.0 system. 

An SBS Transit bus struck a panel at a bus stop in Punggol on Saturday (Jan 10) after reportedly making a sharp turn, causing the glass on its upper deck to shatter.A video posted on Instagram shows the bus with visible damage to its upper deck. The bus involved is believed to be operating on Service 50.According to the video caption, the incident occurred at Punggol Oasis bus stop.A witness noted that a white car was initially parked in front of the bus stop, forcing the bus to make a sharp right turn while exiting. As a result, the bus struck part of the bus stop roof pane, shattering its upper deck window. 

Minister of State Baey Yam Keng has shared a photo of his father's school-leaving certificate from 1954 — and it turns out Tampines was once spelt very differently.In a Facebook post, Baey, who holds portfolios in Culture, Community and Youth as well as Transport and who is also a Member of Parliament for Tampines GRC, revealed that his father was a student of Tampenis School from 1952 to 1954.Yes, you read that right, and that was how Tampines used to be spelt.An unexpected family discoveryBaey wrote that he came across the certificate while looking through his father's belongings.«I was going through my father's old documents and found out that he studied at Tampenis (I didn't know that's how the school and road names were spelt during that time! Check out the certificate.) School for three years,» he wrote.«I didn't know this part of my father's life history. What a coincidence!» he added, referring to his current role representing Tampines.A quick check shows that Tampines was named after the Pokok Tampenis, a tree that once grew abundantly in the area.

The Ministry of Health (MOH) will be closely monitoring the impact of the policy changes to the Integrated Shield Plan (IP) regime as individuals on new riders may choose to seek public healthcare to reduce their out-of-pocket expenses, said Health Minister Ong Ye Kung on Monday (Jan 12). He was responding to parliamentary questions by Members of Parliament on concerns that private healthcare patients would migrate to the public sector following changes to the IP regime that include a higher co-payment cap for new riders from the current $3,000 to $6,000. New riders sold from April 1 this year will also no longer be allowed to cover the minimum deductibles patients have to pay before insurance kicks in.In his reply, Ong said MOH anticipates that there should be a medium-to-long impact on private and public healthcare utilisation rates as well as wait times following the policy changes.

SINGAPORE – A pipe leak near Block 222 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 1 caused water to overflow into a nearby SPC petrol station, national water agency PUB said on Jan 11.In a Facebook post at 3.23pm, it added that at around noon, it was alerted to the leak.“We immediately deployed our service crew and works are ongoing to facilitate repairs on the potable water pipe. There is no water supply disruption to homes and businesses in the area.”PUB is investigating the cause of the leak.Photos sent to The Straits Times earlier on Jan 11 show a grass patch in front of Block 222 flooded with light brown water, partially submerging a path.The water spread to the SPC petrol station where several cars were parked at the back.The flooding also affected all three lanes of Ang Mo Kio Avenue 1 towards Bishan, with police officers deployed to direct traffic.A resident of Block 222, who wanted to be known only as Mr Thevar, told ST: “I noticed the water level when I was looking out of the window and saw the water gushing out from a pipe and seeping into the petrol station area.”

A 33-year-old man and a 24-year-old woman were arrested on Friday (Jan 9) at a condominium located at Oxford Road, near Rangoon Road, following a commotion which lasted for over four hours.The pair, who had been heard engaging in an argument, had locked themselves in a room within the unit, reported Shin Min Daily News.Reporters on the scene saw six police cars, several fire engines and an ambulance at the scene, and an air pack was also deployed at the foot of the block.Police had cordoned off the area, with some officers in full gear and holding shields during the morning incident, the Chinese evening daily reported.Shin Min also observed rescue teams talking with the couple — said to be in a relationship and tenants in the seventh-floor unit — from outside the window, with the dramatic scene attracting curious on-lookers below.Woman appeared to be in distressAccording to a statement from the Singapore Police Force obtained by AsiaOne, police had received a call for assistance at about 8.10am to the residence at 3, Oxford Road.

A passenger who received the gift later shared it on social media to express her appreciation for Toto's parents.Parenting influencers give out goodie bags on first SIA business class flight in case their baby criesA parenting influencer couple gave out goodie bags containing snacks, a greeting note, and earplugs to other passengers while boarding their first Singapore Airlines business class flight - just in case their baby cried.Captioned «Nerve wrecking #couplegoals», the Jan 7 TikTok post by @bertandlulu about the experience has garnered over 2,600,000 views, 243,100 reactions and 565 comments.Hubert, 33, and Yihru, 31, the couple behind the account, have some 788,000 followers. They told Stomp that they were taking their annual trip to Bangkok on Jan 2, to celebrate their wedding anniversary.Along for the ride was their 5-month-old daughter Toto, on what would be a two-hour-long flight.«Hubert used to travel very frequently for work and is no stranger to wailing babies on flights,» said Yihru. «Before having Toto, it was hard to fully understand just how challenging it can be to manage a baby during a meltdown.»

A Punggol LRT train broke down on Saturday afternoon (Jan 10), with SBS Transit staff entering via the emergency exit door to free passengers.In a video posted online, a SBS Transit staff can be seen standing in an LRT carriage with an open emergency exit. Commuter Vincent Lim told 8world that the LRT train came to a sudden halt as it was departing Punggol Point station around 2.30pm. A message was broadcast through the public address system but it was muffled.Lim added a staff member entered the carriage through the front emergency exit after five to ten minutes and opened the LRT doors subsequently.Another commuter added on Reddit that the LRT train broke down beside the station. As such, passengers could exit onto the platform once the doors opened and did not have to walk along the tracks.

A 33-year-old man was arrested by the police on Saturday (Jan 10) afternoon for alleged criminal intimidation.The incident happened at about 12.30pm outside a first-floor in-car entertainment workshop along 25 Kaki Bukit Road 4.In a video posted on social media, a man is seen surrounded by four officers from the police's Emergency Response Team (ERT), outside the said unit. A short distance away, another two police ground response force officers are seen.ERT officers are first-wave responders to high-risk incidents and are equipped with greater firepower and up to 17kg of gear.The man, dressed in black, was wearing a pair of half-finger gloves and holding a cigarette in his left hand.He is seen emptying his pockets after placing a bag on the ground.Responding to AsiaOne's queries, the police said the man was arrested for criminal intimidation, adding that no injuries were reported in the incident. AsiaOne understands that a knife was found on the man.Police investigations are ongoing.editor@asiaone.com