‘5-minute parking fee: S$100K’ — Singapore driver gets shocked at SG car park display showing he parked along River Valley for nearly 20 years

Summary

• A Singapore driver saw a S$100,870 parking fee after spending only about five minutes at a River Valley car park.

• The system showed his vehicle had been parked for 7,204 days, 22 hours and 51 minutes.

• The driver was told by the car park operator that the system failed to detect his In-Vehicle Unit (IU) upon entry.

SINGAPORE: A five-minute parking stop in River Valley somehow turned into a bill for S$100,870, according to a Reddit post.

The driver shared the incident on Sep 25 in r/singapore. He wrote, “Accidentally parked for 20 years.”

The post drew jokes from other users, including one who joked about extending the car’s Certificate of Entitlement. Another asked whether he had parked a DeLorean, referring to the time-travelling car from Back to the Future.

The humour came from an otherwise rather odd parking system error.

Parking system showed car parked for nearly 20 years

The driver said he had parked for only five minutes near his children’s school in River Valley. He said he was still within the car park’s 15-minute grace period when he left. The display, however, showed a parking fee of S$100,870.

The display also claimed the car had been parked for 7,204 days, 22 hours, and 51 minutes. The driver contacted the hotline and was told that the system had failed to detect his In-Vehicle Unit (IU) upon entry.

The gantry then opened normally. The driver was also relieved that the amount was never deducted from his CashCard.

Parking operator says system error caused the wrong fee display

The incident occurred in the car park at 336 River Valley Road, according to an 8world report on Sep 27.

Car park staff said that it was the first such case reported there. Technicians were sent to inspect the system after the operator was informed.

The operator said its checks pointed to a system error rather than a machine fault. Repairs were completed that same day.

The operator also confirmed that the driver was within the 15-minute grace period. As a result, he was not charged any parking fee. Staff also helped him leave the car park.

A five-minute stop led to a very long parking history in this incident, but thankfully, it didn’t lead to a very long bill.