A lot of P-plate sedans on the road these days

[mojito]

Eagle-eyed forummers might have noticed I have become less prolific in my postings. These days I spend a lot more time outdoors. Inevitably some of that time I spend on the road. I can't help but notice the increase in frequency of provisional license stickers on new sedans on a regular basis. Are Singaporeans becoming wealthier? Who are these new upper-middle class drivers who have ascended the socio-economic ladder?

The last instance I saw a regular sedan (not a luxury car, mind you) driven by a balding East Asian man who appears to be in his late forties or early fifties. Is it a case of a matured man, who had never thought of getting a driving license before, who is experiencing a mid-life crisis and feeling the need to "live it up" and finally own a personal transport? Perhaps it is a reflection of the growing wealth of the middle-upper class professionals who have seen remarkable returns on their passive capital investments? Are they even Singaporeans?

Our relentless march towards 6.9 will be accompanied with increasing residency from citizens of foreign origins. It's all and well if they are well-educated, well-adjusted and affluent to boot, but surely this comes with increasing competition for a controlled "aspirational" item that is synonymous with the middle class (not just the comfortably affluent and the fabulously wealthy). Are you prepared to give up your trusty 8-year old Toyota sedan to new economically productive citizens whom the government claims will provide good jobs for your children, and keep the economy humming along with their conspicuous consumption?

I am eager to find out if I am overreacting and one person can only do so much.

Shall we play a game?

The next time you catch a glimpse of a P-plate vehicle on the road, would you continue to post on this thread the following information:
a) The type and make of the vehicle
b) a brief description of the person behind the wheel

This could be fun.

 

[blackmondy]

A lot of fucking ah-nehs behind the wheel.

Just few days back I almost banged into one Mercedes with a blur-fuck ah-neh and his blur-fuck family when he stopped suddenly in front of a ERPee gantry, obviously forgotten to put his cashcard into the UI reader.

Wind down my window and gave him and angry look and he sheepishly show me his cashcard.....CCB.

 

[po2wq]

tot dunno-who said b4 ...

evrybody has a car ...

 

[johnny333]

I thought that if you have a provisional driving licence you need to have a qualified driver in the car while the car is being used

As long as public transport is crowded & limited I doubt that people would be willing to give up the independance of owning a car. Spore is just not like HK where using public transport is convenient.

 

[Confuseous]

A lot of these uncles and aunties with these provisional license stickers are actually experienced drivers, whose children just got their driving licenses. Difficult/inconvenient to keep putting it up and down. Or they could be like my young sweet neighbour who is very experienced but keeps it up because, she tells me, everyone seems to give her a wide berth when she drives although some try to bully her too, on the roads.

 

[Cestbon]

Hope transport minister and LTA will up road tax by 50%.
Fuel tax increase by 10%
Parking charge by 50%.>>>> now very hard to find parking. Always wasting time average 10~15min finding parking space.

 

[mojito]

I thought that if you have a provisional driving licence you need to have a qualified driver in the car while the car is being used

As long as public transport is crowded & limited I doubt that people would be willing to give up the independance of owning a car. Spore is just not like HK where using public transport is convenient.

No lar, not the learner's plate. I am referring to the orange triangle sticker that one is required by law to display prominently on the front and back of the vehicle for the first 12 months after a new driver has obtained his or her driving license. I was puzzled and wonder if there are significantly more new car owners on the road compared to old hands who have been driving for a couple of years. Mind you, these are ordinary cars, not luxury vehicles that I have seen the last couple of days.

A lot of these uncles and aunties with these provisional license stickers are actually experienced drivers, whose children just got their driving licenses. Difficult/inconvenient to keep putting it up and down. Or they could be like my young sweet neighbour who is very experienced but keeps it up because, she tells me, everyone seems to give her a wide berth when she drives although some try to bully her too, on the roads.

You do have a point there. Families with grown up children who have recently obtained their driving license may be driving the family car at times, so the P-plate may have been left on the vehicle for convenience. Maybe I am reading too much into the situation.