The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has partnered with 21 organisations to train and certify automotive technicians in the safety-related areas of electric vehicle (EV) maintenance and servicing to support Singapore’s transition to greener mobility.
To develop training opportunities for new and existing automotive technicians, the LTA has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with those organisations, including automotive industry partners, vehicle fleet owners, training providers, and other government agencies. This collaboration is part of the LTA’s efforts to upskill its existing workforce in order to support the adoption of electric vehicles and the realisation of the Singapore Green Plan 2030.
The parties have agreed on a set of baseline competencies for safe handling of high voltage systems, as well as electrical troubleshooting and diagnostics, as part of the MOU. These competencies constitute the fundamental knowledge and skills in EV maintenance and repair that technicians must acquire prior to working on such vehicles.
LTA will work together with SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) and training providers, such as the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) College West, Singapore Polytechnic, and Ngee Ann Polytechnic, to develop and deliver foundational training courses based on the list of recognised competencies. It is anticipated that these training programmes will become accessible beginning in the second half of this year.
The LTA, in collaboration with the SSG, will offer basic course cost subsidies of up to seventy per cent, which will be applied toward the reduction of course fees in order to make these training courses available to participants whose financial situations are diverse. This will ensure that these training courses are accessible to participants who are in a variety of financial situations.
Furthermore, a new national certification scheme will be established to recognise automotive technicians who successfully complete these courses and obtain the necessary competencies. The certification, which is acknowledged by all parties to the MOU, will clear the path for technicians to pursue additional training in EV maintenance.
LTA will collaborate also with SSG and Workforce Singapore (WSG) to reskill new and existing automotive technicians for EV maintenance employment through programmes such as SSG’s SkillsFuture Career Transition Programme and WSG’s Career Conversion Programme (CCP). Under the CCP, qualifying organisations or trainees can get paid support for the duration of their training.
As Singapore works toward its goal of having a bus fleet that is 100 per cent powered by cleaner energy by the year 2040, having a steady supply of qualified staff to support the public bus industry would help accelerate the transition to more environmentally friendly modes of public transportation.
In addition, the LTA is implementing new programmes within the public transportation sector to educate and certify mechanics in the upkeep of buses operating on alternative fuels. To prepare their personnel for the transition, LTA and ITE recently inked an MOU designating ITE College West as the second satellite assessment centre for the Singapore Bus Academy. In January of this year, Republic Polytechnic was designated as the first satellite centre.
Four public bus operators will get access to the two satellite assessment centres for the training and evaluation of their technicians in the maintenance and repair of electric and hybrid buses. Those who pass the technical competency evaluation under the national chartership scheme for technicians administered by the Institution of Engineers, Singapore (IES) will receive a certificate issued jointly by LTA and IES.
