Cabby asked to remove sticker bearing name of porn website

The sticker shows the name of a website that produces videos of drivers and passengers engaged in sexual acts in taxis. PHOTO: STOMP

SINGAPORE - A cabby has been asked to remove from his taxi a sticker bearing the name of a pornographic website.

A photo sent to citizen journalism website Stomp last Thursday (Sept 5) shows the decal pasted on the boot of a Silvercab, which is operated by Premier Taxis.

The sticker shows the name of a website that produces videos of drivers and passengers engaged in sexual acts in taxis.

A spokesman for Premier Taxis told Stomp last Friday that the company has recalled the cab to remove the sticker and is investigating the incident.

In response to queries from The Straits Times, a spokesman for the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said: "According to the Road Traffic Act, no advertisements should be displayed on the inside or outside of a public service vehicle, including taxis and private hire cars, without prior written approval from LTA."

Those convicted of displaying unauthorised advertisements on public service vehicles without the prior written approval of LTA may be jailed up to 3 months, fined up to $1,000 or both.

ST has contacted Premier Taxis for comment.

Lawyers whom ST spoke to said there are no specific rules about the types of decals that people can paste on their vehicles.

"There is no provision that covers car decals except for what can be advertised on a taxi," said lawyer Gloria James-Civetta, head lawyer at Gloria James-Civetta & Co.

She added that the decal on the Silvercab could be considered an advertisement under the Road Traffic Act, which prohibits advertisements from being displayed in or outside public service vehicles like taxis without prior approval from an authority.

Lawyer Amarick Gill, director of Amarick Gill LLC, said he felt the decal on the taxi should not be cause for concern.

He said: "It isn't clear that the decal shows a porn website. There is nothing defamatory or obscene about it."

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