Goods vehicles should be used primarily for the carriage of goods. To help manage business costs, the Road Traffic Act provides an exception for owners and hirers of goods vehicles, including goods vans, to use their vehicles to transport their workers to and from their places of work or business so long as they comply with various safety requirements.

Goods vans are generally not used for the mass transport of workers for commute trips and are observed to be used more by the specialist trade for the transport of goods or equipment as well as some attendants. We recognise that there could be some occasions where the owner or hirer of the goods van needs to use his van to transport his workers. As part of the safety requirement, the owner or hirer of the goods van must display a Maximum Passenger Capacity (MPC) label on the vehicle indicating the maximum number of workers that can be transported on the cargo deck of the vehicle. The MPC label serves as a reminder to the vehicle owner, hirer and driver of the maximum number of workers that the vehicle can carry on the cargo deck of the vehicle as well as facilitates enforcement against errant employers. When determining the maximum passenger capacity of a cargo deck, the usable deck area should not include the area occupied by any permanent fixtures on the cargo deck such as cranes, toolboxes, etc. If goods are also transported, the number of persons should be reduced accordingly. The MPC is calculated based on the total unoccupied deck area divided by the area of 0.372 square metres (4 square feet) per person, round down to the nearest whole number. The vehicle is not allowed to exceed its loading capacity or travel faster than the vehicle speed limit of 60 km/h or the stipulated road speed limit.

Owner or hirer of goods van should also ensure that the van is fitted with proper air-conditioning or mechanical ventilation system so as to provide adequate comfort for the workers transported. The onus would be on the owner/driver to ensure the safety and welfare of the workers transported.

Source:LTA