Controversial touchscreen display for the ERP 2.0 OBU (On-Board Unit) will be optional for motorists

The compact antenna unit of the ERP 2.0 OBU (On-Board Unit) without the optional touchscreen display.

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has announced that the installation of the touchscreen display for the ERP 2.0 OBU (on-board unit) will be optional for motorists who prefer to use their smartphone instead. 

They can use the LTA's official ERP 2.0 app to access key ERP 2.0 information such as road pricing alerts, ERP 2.0 payments/deductions and CEPAS card status/balance in the OBU's processing unit. Compatible third-party apps can also be used for ERP 2.0.

One advantage of using the integral touchscreen display, however, is its ability to adjust the audio alert volume (e.g. for ERP 2.0 charge) from the OBU processing unit. Without the touchscreen display and with just the smartphone app, the OBU's audio alert volume has to be set at the point of installation.

The ERP 2.0 OBU's processing unit installed in its default location, the front passenger footwell.

The touchscreen display won't be installed if the motorist so chooses, but the antenna unit remains, along with the processing unit. 

The antenna unit is on the right side of the windscreen near the A-pillar (where the IU is currently located by default), while the processing unit will be mounted on the right side of the front passenger footwell. However, the car owner can have the processing unit placed elsewhere within the cabin, subject to the installer's assessment and the suitability of the alternate location. 

All vehicle owners will get the three-piece OBU (touchscreen, antenna unit, processing unit) at the point of installation, even if they opt to install the system without the display. 

The controversial touchscreen display for the ERP 2.0 OBU (On-Board Unit) has become optional for motorists.

LTA will notify vehicle owners progressively, with instructions on how to schedule an installation appointment within a two-month period. LTA will also issue a list of workshops authorised and trained to install the OBUs. The device and its installation will be free for motorists who receive the notification from LTA. 

The OBU installation exercise is expected to take 18 to 24 months and will start in November 2023 with fleet owners (with 20 or more vehicles), including public buses, taxis and goods vehicles. 

Each installation in a car will take about three hours. The new OBU comes with a five-year warranty, same as today's IU.

Motorists who do not receive the LTA notification to install the OBU won't need to do so, perhaps because their current cars have less than two years left on their COE. OBU installation is expected to be mandatory for all vehicle owners notified by LTA to do so. New cars registered from the first quarter of 2024 will come with OBUs.

The ERP 2.0 OBU works with valid CEPAS cards such as EZ-Link Motoring Card, NETS FlashPay and NETS Motoring Card, but it does not work with CashCards, which will be phased out. Back-end cashless payment options are also available, such as direct billing to a credit or debit card. 

The ERP 2.0 OBU is backwards-compatible with electronic parking systems (EPS) everywhere in Singapore, because the OBU's antenna unit houses both a "current" antenna and a "future" antenna. ERP 2.0 is based on GNSS (Global Navgation Satellite System) and the OBU communicates with the network via secured 4G. 

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