Police powers to weigh vehicles
Road Traffic Act section 94 lets a police officer authorised in writing require a vehicle to be weighed, direct it to a weighing machine, and require unloading for an unladen weighing; refusal is an offence.
Primary source: https://sso.agc.gov.sg/Act/RTA1961?ProvIds=pr94-
Police powers to weigh vehicles
A police officer authorised in writing by the Deputy Commissioner of Police may require the person in charge of a motor vehicle to allow the vehicle or a trailer it draws to be weighed laden or unladen, and to have the weight transmitted to the road by any part in contact with it tested. For that purpose, the person may be required to proceed immediately to a weighbridge or another machine for weighing vehicles (Singapore Statutes Online, Road Traffic Act 1961, s. 94(1)).
If the person in charge refuses or neglects to comply with a requirement under section 94(1), that person commits an offence. The authorised officer may also require the vehicle or trailer to be unloaded so it can be weighed unladen. The person who carries out a weighing must give the person in charge a certificate of weight (Singapore Statutes Online, Road Traffic Act 1961, s. 94(2)–(4)).
Where a proceeding needs proof of a vehicle’s laden or unladen weight, or the weight of its load, section 139(6) says a certificate signed by the public officer in charge of the weighing machine is prima facie proof of the certified facts if it also certifies that the machine was examined and found accurate within the previous 12 months (Singapore Statutes Online, Road Traffic Act 1961, s. 139(6)).
Section 94 does not set a special penalty for refusal or neglect. Where no special penalty is provided, section 131(2) sets the maximum court penalty: for a first offence, a fine of $1,000, imprisonment for up to 3 months, or both; for a second or subsequent offence, a fine of $2,000, imprisonment for up to 6 months, or both (Singapore Statutes Online, Road Traffic Act 1961, ss. 94 and 131(2)).
Coverage debt
- Section 94 does not state where each weighing machine is located or explain the procedure for contesting a weight measurement. This article does not infer either (Singapore Statutes Online, Road Traffic Act 1961, s. 94).