SINGAPORE - Motorists can celebrate the nation's 50th birthday and do their part for charity by buying "red dots" and decorating their cars with them.

These red foam balls - symbolic of Singapore's reputation as a little red dot - were created by ComfortDelGro for a charity drive which aims to raise up to $250,000.

They can be bought for $10 at Singapore Petroleum Company's pump stations islandwide, as well as from selected ComfortDelGro offices and centres.

The proceeds will go to four beneficiaries: the Lions Befrienders Service Association (Singapore), the Handicaps Welfare Association, the Cerebral Palsy Alliance Singapore, and the Singapore Association of the Visually Handicapped.

A total of 50,000 "red dots", which are attached to a plastic stand that can be clipped to car windows, will be put on sale until the end of August 2015.

ComfortDelGro and its subsidiaries have already pledged $180,000 to the four beneficiaries, with the Lions Befrienders receiving $60,000, and the other three groups getting $40,000 each.

The Lions Befrienders plans to use the money for its Home Improvement Programme Fund, which was jointly set up by ComfortDelGro in 2010.

The programme helps old people living in one-room rental flats by providing them with new electrical and household items, such as refrigerators, washing machines, televisions, fans, mattresses and bed frames.